We somehow immediately assume of “white” whenever we hear it as an unhealthy refined option of food that is striped out of its natural goodness.
In most cases this concept is correct and most of the white unhealthy foods have another brown healthy option such as in the case of white flour and whole flour, white sugar and brown sugar, etc, however this is not exactly the case in all foods as rice stands as an exception.
Most of us believe that white rice is a less healthy option than brown rice and that white rice can spike blood sugar levels as in the case of other refined grains like white bread that has a high glycemic index.
However in the case of rice, the property to spike blood sugar levels doesn’t exactly depend on color as much as it depends on the type of the rice itself.
For example, disregarding to color, basmati rice has an incredibly low glycemic index when compared to other types of rice.
And what is surprising is that, in a study published by the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition people who consumed brown basmati rice were found to have higher blood glucose levels short after consumption than those who ate white basmati rice.
In the study, researchers gave 11 types of rice to 14 healthy participants, including white and brown basmati rice.
They then tested their blood to find out which type of rice falls under the category of low glycemic index (doesn’t raise blood sugar) and which type fell under the category of medium-high glycemic index (raises blood sugar levels).
By the end of the study they found out that white basmati rice didn’t cause a spike in participants blood sugar levels while its brown alternative cause a spike in the blood sugar for participants.
And while brown rice is still good for your health you shouldn’t blame yourself for preferring white rice instead.
Another factor that should encourage you to prefer white rice rather than brown rice is the high content of phytates in brown rice.
Phytates, or phytic acid is known as an anti-nutrient as it prevents the absorption of important nutrients for the health like zinc, iron and calcium.
This doesn’t drastically threaten your health however it was proven that consuming too much foods high in phytates can cause mineral deficiencies.
So even though brown rice is popular as a healthier alternative for white rice and is more recommended to diabetics , the truth is that it can spike blood sugar levels more than white rice does in addition to the fact that it prevent the absorption of numerous significant minerals the body needs.
