The human body was never meant to consume rice!
You see, our genes have hardly changed in more than 30,000 years.
However, our food choices and lifestyle have changed dramatically. The
caveman would hardly recognize our food or way of life.
Caveman
food was never cooked as fire was not yet tamed. Thus, he ate only
those foods that he can eat without treatment with or by fire. He ate
fruits, vegetables, fish, eggs, nuts and meat. Yes, even meat. You can
even eat meat raw if you were starving in the forest. You have the
necessary enzymes to digest meat.
However, rice - like wheat
and corn - cannot be eaten raw. It must be cooked. Even if you were
starving in the desert, you cannot eat rice in the raw form. This is
because we do not have the system of enzymes to break rice down. We were
never meant to eat rice. To make matters worse, we not only eat rice,
but also make it the bulk of our food.
In some parts of Asia,
rice forms up to 85% of the plate. Even if we take rice, let's keep it
to a minimum. Remember, it is only for our tongue... not our body.
Actually, rice and other grains like wheat and corn are actually worse
than sugar. There are many reasons:
Rice becomes sugar - lots of it!
This is a fact that no nutritionist can deny: rice is chemically no
different form sugar. One bowl of cooked rice is the caloric equivalent
of 10 teaspoons of sugar. This does not matter whether the rice is
white, brown or herbal rice. Brown rice is richer in fibre, some B
vitamins and minerals... but it is still the caloric equal of 10
teaspoons of sugar. To get the same 10 teaspoons of sugar, we need to
consume lots of kangkong... 10 bowls of it.
Rice is digested to become sugar.
Rice can be digested only when it is thoroughly cooked. However, when
thoroughly cooked, it becomes sugar and spikes circulating blood sugar
within half an hour... almost as quickly as it would if we took a sugar
candy. Rice is very low in the "rainbow of anti-oxidants" .This complete
anti-oxidant rainbow is necessary for the effective and
safe
utilization of sugar. Fruits come with a sugar called fructose. However,
they are not empty calories as the fruit is packed with a whole host of
other nutrients that help its proper assimilation and digestion.
Rice has no fibre.
The fiber of the kangkong fills us up long before our blood sugar
spikes. This is because the fibre bulks and fills up our stomach. Since
white rice has no fibre, we end up eating lots of "calorie dense" food
before we get filled up. Brown rice has more fibre but still contains
the same amount of sugar.
Rice is tasteless.
Sugar is
sweet. There is only so much that we can eat at one sitting. How many
teaspoons of sugar can we eat before we feel like throwing up? Could you
imagine eating 10 teaspoons of sugar in one seating?
Rice is always the main part of the meal.
While sugar may fill our dessert or sweeten our coffee, it will never
be the main part of any meal. We could eat maybe two to three teaspoons
of sugar at one meal. However, we could easily eat the equal value of
two to three bowls (20 - 30 teaspoons) of sugar in one meal. I am always
amused when I see someone eat sometimes five bowls of rice (equals 50
teaspoons of sugar) and then ask for tea or coffee without sugar!
There is no real "built in" mechanism for us to prevent over-eating of
rice. How much kangkong can we eat? How much fried chicken? How much
steamed fish? Think about that! In one seating, we cannot take lots of
chicken, fish or cucumber, but we can take lots of rice. Eating rice
causes us to eat more salt.
As rice is tasteless, we tend to
consume more salt... another villain when it comes to high blood
pressure control. We tend to take more curry that has salt to help
flavor the rice. We also tend to consume more ketchup and soy sauce
which are also rich in salt.
Eating rice causes us to drink less water.
The more rice we eat, the less water we will drink as there is no
mechanism to prevent the over-eating of rice. Rice, wheat and corn come
hidden in our daily food. As rice is tasteless, it tends to end up in
other foods that serve as rice substitutes. .. like rice flour, noodles
and bread. We tend to eat the hidden forms which still get digested
into sugar. Rice, even when cooked, is difficult to digest.
Can't eat raw rice? Try eating rice half cooked. Contrary to popular
belief, rice is very difficult to digest. It is "heavy stuff". If you
have problems with digestion, try skipping rice for a few days. You will
be amazed at how the problem will just go away.
Rice prevents
the absorption of several vitamins and minerals. Rice when taken in bulk
will reduce the absorption of vital nutrients like zinc, iron and the B
vitamins.
Are you a rice addict?
Going rice less may not
be easy, but we can still go rice less. Eating ess rice could be a lot
easier than we think. Here are some strategies that we can pursue in our
quest to eat less rice:
1. Eat less rice - Cut your rice by
half. Barry Sears, author of the Zone Diet, advises "eating rice like
spice". Instead, increase your fruits & vegetables intake.
2. Take more lean meats and fish.
3. You can even take more eggs and nuts. Have "rice less" meals. Take no
rice or wheat at say, breakfast. Go for eggs instead.
4. Go on "rice less" days - Go "western" once a week. Take no rice and
breads for one day every week! That can't be too difficult. Appreciate
the richness of your food. Go for taste, colors and smells. Make eating a
culinary delight. Enjoy your food in the original flavors.
5. Avoid the salt shaker or ketchup. You will automatically eat less rice.
6. Eat your fruit dessert before your meals. The fibre-rich fruits will
"bulk up" in your stomach. Thus, you will eat less rice and more
fruits.
OUR WATER AFTER EACH MEAL
For those who like
to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It says it is
nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water
will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed.
It
will slow down the digestion. Once this "sludge" reacts with the acid,
it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the
solid food. It will line the intestine! Very soon, this will turn into
fats and lead to cancer.
It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.
Source: With Dua
Aliwale Hussainwale
Motive is to get connected with Shia World
healthremedies.awhw@gmail.com
