White rice is a staple food in almost every Asian culture, so if you are Asian and you're reading this, this post should be right up your alley! As noted in my previous post "My Story: From fat to Fit" http://nutritionnatural.blogspot.com/2013/07/my-story-from-fat-to-fit.html, white rice was one of the leading contributors to my weight gain - it was eaten at least one meal a day, and the results were bad. There's something about eating Asian food that is kind of frustrating - you never stay full for a long time! I haven't been able to figure out why this is until recently; This is because the meals, especially in Chinese culture, are heavily driven by white rice consumption. I would have to eat several bowls of white rice to remain full, and the pounds really added on quickly. Because of this, I have stopped eating white rice at home and have been cooking brown rice, and the benefits have been pretty substantial. In this post, I will get into the pros and cons of white and brown rice and show you why brown rice is the way to go.
White Rice:
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White rice is when the grain of rice is milled and has its husk, bran, and germ removed. It is then polished to make the seed brighter and white. Because of these processes, a lot of the important nutrients are removed, such as vitamin B and Dietary Fiber (In 1 cup of white rice, there is 5% daily value of vitamin B-6 and .6g dietary fiber). Vitamin B is crucial for converting carbohydrates into glucose in the body, which is just a fancy way of saying energy production. It also helps maintain a healthy nervous and digestive system, along with healthy hair, nails and skin. Dietary fiber is important to ensure smooth function of the digestive system and it normalizes bowel movements. On top of that, it helps to maintain a healthy weight, lower risk of diabetes and heart disease, and lowers cholesterol. The benefits of white rice are that it has a long shelf life (10 years), it's fairly inexpensive ($2.50 for a 32 oz bag of white rice), and calorie wise isn't too bad (206 calories/cup).
Brown Rice:
Brown rice is whole grain rice, which means that just the husk is removed while the bran and germ are still intact. The bran and germ give the rice it's brown color and also a unique chewiness. It's a taste that may take a little bit getting used to because it doesn't go down as smoothly as white rice, but it really isn't a big deal. Because the bran and germ are there, the rice offers a lot more nutrition compared to white rice. Brown rice is rich in vitamin B and dietary fiber, and the effects of those two nutrients are vital to good health and maintaining a healthy weight, as mentioned earlier. (In 1 cup of brown rice, there is 15% daily value of vitamin B-6 and 3.5g dietary fiber). The only downsides I really found were that brown rice has a shorter shelf life (6 years), has more calories/cup (216), and is a bit more expensive ($2.75 for a 16 oz bag) compared to white rice.
Conclusion:
I definitely recommend making the switch to brown rice if at all possible. Although it costs more money and doesn't last as long, the nutritional benefits are worth the few extra dollars it would cost to make this change. Also, White rice may have fewer calories, but you have to eat more of it to feel full compared to if you just ate brown rice. The general rule of thumb is, if you can find the whole grain alternative, ALWAYS choose that one because of the nutritional benefits it offers. Brown rice is sold in pretty much all grocery stores so there shouldn't be a problem in finding it. Since the brown rice has more fiber, it will require more water to cook it and the cooking directions will be different compared to white rice. To learn how to make brown rice, use this link here: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2007/03/how-to-cook-brown-rice/. Just by making this small change, you will have a lot more energy and will feel more satisfied after your meal.
Sources:
https://www.google.com/#bav=on.2,or.r_cp.r_qf.&fp=56c151f7a86970d2&q=white+rice+nutrition
https://www.google.com/#bav=on.2,or.r_cp.r_qf.&fp=56c151f7a86970d2&q=white+rice+brown+rice+nutrition
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_rice
Pictures:
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/media/inline/blog/Image/white_rice_diabetes.jpg
http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2009_4_15-massa-rice1.jpg
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