Eating Brown Rice Can Reduce Risk Factors for Type 2 Diabetes

A new medical study was conducted by Harvard's School of Public Health on the interaction between white and brown rice and diabetes. The study in which the findings are available online with the Archives of Internal Medicine concluded that actively consuming brown rice can lower a person's risk for diabetes.

As well as replacing as little as one third of a daily amount of white rice with a serving of brown rice may significantly lower a person's risk of developing type 2 diabetes. As well as replacing rice with other forms of whole grains can lower a person's risk for type 2 diabetes even more.

The amount of rice consumed in the United States has significantly increased over the years and the study believes that replacing white rice and other refined grains with whole grains can significantly help lower Americans risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes.

Whole grains such as brown rice are rich in magnesium and magnesium is a mineral that is a significant factor in production of several enzymes. One enzyme in particular to magnesium takes part in the body's use of insulin and glucose secretion. This defining factor is part of the basis for whole grains such as brown rice being associated to diabetes. Whole grains has always been noted for helping lower the risk of heart disease and certain types of cancers, however now this new study shows that regular consumption of whole grains can also reduce risk factors for type 2 diabetes.

The study that was conducted found that regular weekly servings of white rice increased a person's risk factors for type 2 diabetes, while those that replaced their white rice with brown and limited their intake of rice with other whole grains substantially lowered the risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes. Simply replacing white rice with whole grains reduced a person's risk by approximately more than 35 percent. The problem is that in the US, Americans consume a much higher quantity of white rice as opposed to brown.

As far as nutritional factors, fiber, vitamins, antioxidants and minerals are removed in the process of making white rice and rice flour, while those nutrients are prevalent in germ and bran. While most Americans can be reluctant to change to brown rice, however many people after changing actually admit over time they like the nutty flavor that brown rice possesses. Some people however chose to implement brown rice into their diets by mixing the two rices together. Brown rice can easily be maneuvered into diets by placing in soups and casseroles that don't depend on the rice for the overall taste of the dish.

References for this article include:

www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1286623/Brown-rice-lowers-risk-diabetes-16-cent.html

timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/health-fitness/health/Brown-rice-eaters-have-lower-risk-of-diabetes/articleshow/6049265.cms

diabetes.webmd.com/news/20100614/brown-rice-vs-white-rice-which-is-better