Rice and Pastas
Rice is a rich source of carbohydrates. In its natural form, rice grain is brown in color not white. Brown rice has not gone through any food processing and has all of its nutritious ingredients still present. The ingredients of a rice grain are carbohydrates rich endosperm, fibrous bran and nutritious germ.
White rice, on the other hand, has gone through the milling process just like the whole grain flour, with nutritious bran and germ removed. This leaves white rice with mainly carbohydrates.
White Vs. Brown Rice:
Both white and brown rice are great sources of carbohydrates, but white rice causes more of an insulin spike due to its very low fiber and fat content. Brown rice also increases insulin release, but the fiber and fats help reduce this.
Insulin spike: Fiber present in brown rice and whole grains acts as brakes for insulin increase. That is why people with diabetes are recommended to consume fiber in their diet, which slows the absorption of sugar and help improve blood sugar levels. This way there is no blood-glucose spike and pancreas do not have to release excessive insulin to tackle blood- glucose spike.
Milled flour and white rice are known to cause insulin spikes. Children nowadays indulge in white rice and refined flour on a constant basis causing their blood-glucose to spike in a short span of time. This in turn leads to excessive insulin release from pancreas to manage the blood-glucose spike. Refined flour is the single biggest reason why kids around 5 year old are having diabetes and obesity as a major health concern.
A healthy diet that includes insoluble fiber may also reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Complex carbs are hundreds of sugar units linked together, breads, starchy veg, rice, pasta and cereals are examples
Healthy alternatives:
Choose brown rice over white rice
Durum or semolina wheat instead of white flour pasta
Choose whole grain over non refined products
