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Boiled Rice and Diabetes
Summary
- Diabetes has become a common condition from kids to the elderly.
- High blood sugar and low insulin production are the primary reasons.
- White rice has high amounts of carbs and high glycemic index. Better to be avoided by diabetic people.
- Alternatives for white rice are basmati rice, wild rice, brown rice.
- Other foods include bajra, oats, millets etc.
Diabetes, once a disease seen only in the elderly that today has become a very common disease. From children to adults and to the elderly, no one is spared. Blame the lifestyle or changed food habits, high blood sugar levels are seen in people of all ages.
Our bodies produce sugar/glucose from the food we eat. The intestines extract the glucose from the food and send it into the blood stream so that it gets distributed to every cell, tissue and muscle inside the body and helps them function. However, in order for this distribution and absorption of sugar from blood by other body parts to happen, body needs insulin. Insulin is the door way through which the blood sugar gets absorbed. Insulin is produced by the pancreas. In people whose pancreas don’t function well and produces less insulin, the blood sugar doesn’t get absorbed into the body as well as it should and that results in diabetes.
Spike in blood sugar levels once in a while, when you eat too much sweet or consume sugary drinks is ok, as long as the body is able to bring them down to normal levels. If the high sugar levels continue to remain in your body, that is a problem because, diabetes can result in stiffening of blood vessels, cardiovascular diseases, foot ulcers, wounds not healing and kidney problems.
What is the link between (boiled) rice consumption and diabetes?
Carbohydrates are readily turned into glucose in the body. Eating large amounts of carbohydrates increases the blood sugar levels. Rice is full of carbohydrates and we Indians consume rice in some form or the other at least twice a day. Instead, you can substitute rice with millets and bajra. If you are used to having rice, you may find it difficult initially but as you get used to the new diet, you will automatically see the difference (drop in your sugar levels).
Also, start consuming small portions at any time. Instead of eating 3 meals a day, break it into 4 or 6 meals a day with small portions. That way, you will add less sugar to your blood after every meal.
Exercise regularly
Rice is a staple food for many Indians and also to many Asians. Rice is full of carbohydrates which are readily converted into blood sugar. Owing to the fact that a couple of decades ago, we were dependent on a lot of manual/physical work for livelihood or travelling or even for household activities, it made sense to consume a lot of energy giving foods. But, the scenario today has changed with the advent of faster vehicles, machines to do labour work, the amount of physical effort has greatly come down BUT, the type of food that we are habituated to consume hasn’t changed as per our body needs. To worsen the situation, many “junk” foods, “fast” foods have come into the market which are proven to harm our health but we still eat them.
When a person consumes rice, during the digestion process, the blood sugar levels spikes up and if there is not enough insulin, the sugar remains in the blood stream. With reduced physical activity, the insulin sensitivity of the body also decreases; meaning, body will get further less energy.
Alternative for boiled rice for people with diabetes
If you are pre-diabetic or a diabetic, you need to know these two things in your food:
- Amount of carbohydrates
- Glycemic Index of that food.
Amount of carbohydrates in food directly affects the sugar levels. Similarly Glycemic index of a food also affects the sugar levels. Higher the index, higher is its effect and you always must consider food with low glycemic index.
White rice has the highest glycemic index of at least 70 or above. Other rice such as wild rice, brown rice and basmati rice have lower glycemic index and can be considered as alternatives for white rice.
Other food grains that one can consider for substituting rice are:
- Millets (There are different types of millets you can try)
- Bajra
- Oats
- Barley
- Quinoa (looks similar to millets)
- Buckwheat
You are diabetic and still want to eat rice, is it ok?
Yes and No.
No – that you should not eat large portions at once.
Yes – break your 3 meal a day to 6 meals a day. Cut down little rice and add more proteins and vegetables. If you can end your meal with a fruit, that’s even better.
“Small portions, multiple times a day” helps you not dump your blood with lots of sugar.