Lynn Griffith – Rice is a staple household food item for nearly half of the 7 billion people across the globe. (1) In the United States, rice is often shied away from due to its carbohydrate composition. The concern of weight gain associated with carbohydrates has become a first world concern for those who are dieting or suffering from certain chronic illnesses.

New method of cooking rice changes structure of starch in rice to lower calories and reduce glucose.

For those who would like to enjoy rice, there may be a new option! Scientists from the American Chemical Society have developed a simple new way of cooking rice that cuts the calories in half! This may potentially help reduce obesity rates and help control blood sugar. (2,3)

Obesity continues to be a major health concern. As people have become more sedentary, their diets also need to change. Addressing serving sizes and food options is one way to do this. As a whole, it appears that we are consuming more fats and sugars than ever before and addictions to carbohydrates continue to grow. One cup of rice averages about 240 calories and when pairing that with your favorite side from your favorite restaurant, the calories escalate exponentially. (2,3)

“Because obesity is a growing health problem, especially in many developing countries, we wanted to find food-based solutions,” says team leader Sudhair A. James. “We discovered that increasing rice resistant starch (RS) concentrations was a novel way to approach the problem.” By using a specific heating and cooking regimen, the scientists concluded that “if the best rice variety is processed, it might reduce the calories by about 50-60 percent.” (2,3)

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