I generally do best without starch as well. However, white rice is the exception, if cooked correctly, in the traditional way (cook by boiling it in water and then straining it, which also dramatically lowers any arsenic which may be in the rice). Brown rice contains some of the PUFA and problematic fibers which have shown to act as DHT inhibitors, etc. White rice, from what I have seen, lack these things for the most part, since the bran/fiber is stripped away. I would say white rice is almost as safe as pure sugar. I think the problem people may have with it are mainly 1) not cooking it properly and 2) not eating enough healthy vegetables or other foods with the white rice to slow glucose absorption. The vast majority of my carbs come from fruit, but I will from time to time have a vegetable rich meal with some white rice.
I usually eat plenty of steamed/cooked greens with the white rice when I do consume it. I often make a stew/soup of greens/veggies, which include turnip greens and bok choy (which are very high in calcium) celery, mushrooms, peppers, onions, broccoli, etc. So the fiber from the veggies lower the absorption and keep my appetite and energy sustained longer. I am currently experimenting with no dairy, so the calcium from greens is something I rely on for my calcium, in conjunction to some fruits --- which actually add up to be quite a bit of calcium as well in my daily diet. Just one head of Bok Choy gives me around 800mg of calcium alone.
Potatoes on paper should seem better in some regards because they are higher than rice in nutrients, but white rice probably is still better digestion-wise for many because it contains less overall problematic compounds and is thus easier to digest.
On a side note, while it seems true that potatoes generally have more nutrients, it seems that the idea that white rice is pretty much empty of nutrients is also a misconception. According to Nutrition Data, cooked white jasmine rice still contains a decent amount of folate, thiamine, some pantothenic acid, some magnesium, and quite a bit of selenium, etc. Very low in Iron too. This is for unenriched long grain rice.
Rice, white, long-grain, regular, cooked, unenriched, without salt Nutrition Facts & Calories
To be exact: 2% Thaimin, 3% Niacin, 3% Maganese, 1% folate, 17% selenium, 7% Vitamin B6, 6% Vitamin B5, 5% zinc, 5% copper, 5% magnesium, just over 4g of protein and just over 200 calories. And only 0.1g PUFA. Not bad. One could easily eat some fructose containing food with the rice as many cultures do if they want to not just have glucose from the rice. So all in all, white rice is a decent source of selenium and manganese. If you eat two servings or more like many people who eat rice do, then you're getting a somewhat decent source of magnesium, and some of the other B vitamins and minerals, which especially helps fill in any nutritional gaps when one already eats a decent diet or nutritious foods with the rice meal and needs to fill in a remaining 10-20% of one or more vitamins or minerals.
I usually eat plenty of steamed/cooked greens with the white rice when I do consume it. I often make a stew/soup of greens/veggies, which include turnip greens and bok choy (which are very high in calcium) celery, mushrooms, peppers, onions, broccoli, etc. So the fiber from the veggies lower the absorption and keep my appetite and energy sustained longer. I am currently experimenting with no dairy, so the calcium from greens is something I rely on for my calcium, in conjunction to some fruits --- which actually add up to be quite a bit of calcium as well in my daily diet. Just one head of Bok Choy gives me around 800mg of calcium alone.
Potatoes on paper should seem better in some regards because they are higher than rice in nutrients, but white rice probably is still better digestion-wise for many because it contains less overall problematic compounds and is thus easier to digest.
On a side note, while it seems true that potatoes generally have more nutrients, it seems that the idea that white rice is pretty much empty of nutrients is also a misconception. According to Nutrition Data, cooked white jasmine rice still contains a decent amount of folate, thiamine, some pantothenic acid, some magnesium, and quite a bit of selenium, etc. Very low in Iron too. This is for unenriched long grain rice.
Rice, white, long-grain, regular, cooked, unenriched, without salt Nutrition Facts & Calories
To be exact: 2% Thaimin, 3% Niacin, 3% Maganese, 1% folate, 17% selenium, 7% Vitamin B6, 6% Vitamin B5, 5% zinc, 5% copper, 5% magnesium, just over 4g of protein and just over 200 calories. And only 0.1g PUFA. Not bad. One could easily eat some fructose containing food with the rice as many cultures do if they want to not just have glucose from the rice. So all in all, white rice is a decent source of selenium and manganese. If you eat two servings or more like many people who eat rice do, then you're getting a somewhat decent source of magnesium, and some of the other B vitamins and minerals, which especially helps fill in any nutritional gaps when one already eats a decent diet or nutritious foods with the rice meal and needs to fill in a remaining 10-20% of one or more vitamins or minerals.
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