Eating white rice may be worse than drinking soda

While experts believe type 2 diabetes is brought on by obesity as well as the consumption of sugary foods and drinks, a new study suggests that white rice, a food staple in most Asian countries, is a top culprit for the disease.

Starchy white rice, which is consumed by most Asians at every meal, can overload your body with sugar and elevate your risk for diabetes. In fact, a study by Harvard researchers in 2012 suggests that each additional serving of white rice may increase your risk for type 2 diabetes by 10%.

It is not clear how white rice exactly impacts diabetes but it is believed that the food’s high glycemic index (GI), a measure of how food influences blood sugar levels, is responsible for it. Foods with high GI have been previously linked to increased risk of diabetes.

“White rice has long been a part of Asian diets in which diabetes risk was very low. It is white rice plus aspects of modern living — including less physical work — that conspire to elevate the incidence of Type 2 diabetes,” explained Dr. David Katz, associate professor of public health at Yale University.

Brown rice, anyone?

Singapore Health Promotion Board chief executive Zee Yoong Kang has encouraged people to look for healthier varieties of grains instead of totally ditching white rice.

Kang said there is no need to completely replace white rice as you can incorporate brown rice into meals.

Furthermore, Qi Sun of Harvard School of Public Health believes brown rice is a good alternative for white rice as it contains fiber and magnesium.

“People with high white rice consumption lack these beneficial nutrients and Asian populations consume a lot of white rice. If you consume brown rice instead, you will get these nutrients. There are alternatives,” Qi Sun said.