What are the nutritional benefits of eating rice?
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Dr. Mehmet Oz answered:In Japan, plain rice (no salt or butter) accompanies most every meal. They prefer short-grain white rice, which is lower on the glycemic index (meaning your body takes longer to convert it to sugar), and helps you feel satisfied for longer. Even better is brown rice, a whole grain rich in good-for-you fiber. So try adding a small bowl of short-grain brown rice to meals and see how it helps you feel fuller and eat less.
In Japan, plain rice (no salt or butter) accompanies most every meal. They prefer short-grain white rice, which is lower on the glycemic index (meaning your body takes longer to convert it to sugar), and helps you feel satisfied for longer. Even... More -
Dr. Michael T Murray answered:Brown rice is by far the most nutritional rice form available. Because of the severe milling and polishing process, it is devoid of practically all vitamins and nutrients. For the last hundred years, great efforts have been made to increase Asians' health by encouraging them to consume unmilled rice. Unfortunately, they prefer white rice to brown, so these efforts have failed. As a result, general malnutrition and beriberi are still too common in many Asian regions. Another plan is to enrich white rice with the lost vitamins and minerals. Due to the expense and practicality of this process, eating brown rice still makes better, and more healthful, sense.
Brown rice is a quality source of the vitamin B1, B2, B3, and B6, as well as manganese, iron, selenium, magnesium, phosphorous, and the trace minerals. Additionally, it includes a good supply of protein and gammaoryzanol, an extract of rice bran oil that has been used to treat digestive, menopausal, and cholesterol problems.
Comparable to whole wheat, brown rice is quite nutritious as far as calories, vitamins, and minerals are concerned. Whole wheat does have a greater protein content (12.6 percent compared to 8.9 percent) and fiber content (12.2 percent compared to 3.5 percent), but in terms of quality, brown rice has better protein as far as essential amino acid quantity is concerned.
Like oat bran, rice bran can help treat hypercholesterolemia. In addition to its healthy fiber constituents, rice bran and rice oil have gamma-oryzanol, a compound that not only lowers cholesterol, but exerts growth-promoting properties as well. Since brown rice contains rice bran and gammaoryzanol, it likely possesses a cholesterol lowering effect.
Brown rice is by far the most nutritional rice form available. Because of the severe milling and polishing process, it is devoid of practically all vitamins and nutrients. For the last hundred years, great efforts have been made to increase Asians'... More
