What is the difference between white and brown rice?
In this brief guide, we will answer the query, “What is the difference between white and brown rice?”. We will also discuss the difference between the nutrient composition of white rice and brown rice, which rice is good for diabetes, and the risks that comes with white rice and brown rice.
What is the difference between white and brown rice?
The difference between white rice and brown rice is not just limited to its color, there also have many other differences in their nutrient contents, texture, health benefits, etc. Rice is mostly composed of carbohydrates, with only trace amounts of protein and almost no fat.
Brown rice is a whole grain. That is, it contains the entire grain, including the fiber bran, the nutritive germ, and the carbohydrate-rich endosperm. Because of its strong bran skin, it’s chewy and takes a long time to cook. White rice, on the other hand, has been stripped of its bran and germ, which makes it softer and faster to cook.
All white rice emerges as brown rice. However, the husk, bran, and germ of rice are removed to turn brown rice into white during the milling process. White rice has extremely few essential nutrients because the husk, bran, and germ, which are the most nutritious portion of the grain are removed.
This procedure extends the shelf life of white rice while removing much of its value, including fiber, vitamins, and minerals. White rice is enriched with nutrients to compensate for this. The refined grain is further polished to make it more appealing.
What is the difference between the nutrient composition of white and brown rice?
Fiber
Brown rice contains more fiber than white rice. It typically has 1 to 3 g more fiber than equivalent amounts of white rice.
Manganese
Manganese is a crucial mineral for power generation and antioxidant activity. White rice does not contain this vitamin, however brown rice does.
Selenium
Brown rice contains selenium, which is essential for thyroid hormone production, antioxidant defense, and immune function. Selenium also interacts with vitamin E to protect cells against cancer.
Magnesium
Brown rice, as opposed to white rice, is a good source of magnesium. A typical portion of cooked brown rice, around ½ cup, can provide about 11 percent of your daily magnesium requirements.
Folate
White rice is a good source of folate. A typical 1 cup portion contains 195 to 222 micrograms (mcg) of folate, which is around half of your daily necessary intake. Folate aids your body’s production of DNA and other genetic material. It also aids in cell division.
Which rice is good for diabetes?
Brown rice is good for diabetes. This is not to say that there are no risks of diabetes associated with the consumption of brown rice. There is certainly risk involved, but even replacing white rice with brown rice is said to decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes.
A food’s GI score shows the effect it may have on blood sugar levels, which is high for both white as well as brown rice. It is determined by how slowly or swiftly a certain food raises your blood sugar levels.
White rice has a GI of 72, which means it is easily absorbed into the bloodstream. The GI of brown rice is 50. Although brown rice takes longer to affect your blood sugar, it might still have an impact due to its reduced fiber content when compared to other whole grains.
What are the risks that come with white rice and brown rice?
One of the major risks that come with rice regardless of its type, whether it is white, brown, organic, or conventional is that it is contaminated with arsenic. The United States Food and Drug AdministrationTrusted Source even released a statement warning pregnant women and parents not to eat rice or rice cereals as their primary grain source owing to arsenic poisoning.
Arsenic is a heavy metal that the body collects and cannot excrete over time. Adults should eat a range of meals and grains, not just rice to decrease their arsenic exposure from rice.
Nuts, seeds, and whole grains such as brown rice contain phytic acid, which can bind to the minerals calcium, iron, and zinc.
Some whole grains have adequate phytase, the enzyme needed to break down phytic acid, whereas others, such as oats and brown rice, do not.
Conclusion
In this brief guide, we have answered the query, “What is the difference between white and brown rice?”. We have also discussed the difference between the nutrient composition of white rice and brown rice, which rice is good for diabetes, and the risks that come with white rice and brown rice.
Citations
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/brown-vs-white-rice#how-they-differ
https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/brown-rice-vs-white-rice
