White rice has no nutritional value. The husk, which contains the vitamins and protein, has been entirely stripped, leaving only the soft kernel inside which has almost no nutrients. Thus minerals and vitamins are added back to white rice during the packaging process to make it somewhat healthy.
Opt for parboiled rice (closest to white once cooked) which is also similarly priced to white, or go wild – literally – and get what is called wild rice, which is just how rice should be. I’m also partial to black rice which can be quite more expensive for rice, but it’s really fragrant and tasty (but be careful with the water, it stains easily).
All of these have a higher protein content than white rice, lower calories, and the nutrients didn’t have to get added back in, they come from the rice itself.
I have to disagree with your assessment comrade, if white rice were not reinforced (thankfully this is done by using the ground up husk of the rice grain they just broke up) and you ate it everyday, you would certainly have vitamin deficiencies, potentially lethally so. Is this considered healthy? It’s the same problem as eating lean meat, it can be lethal if you rely on it too much and people should know this is a risk. Thankfully I’m not aware of any non-reinforced rice or white flour, but I have to wonder what exactly is lost during this reinforcing process. The macros are there somewhat, I don’t think all the micros can be.
Rice is a daily staple food in many parts of the world; I agree that people should diversify their diet, but this is easier said than done! (And I’m definitely not the most diverse eater). Replacing white rice with more whole rice, and doing the same with flour, is a simple switch that is more healthy.
Healthy like you said is a vague concept, but there are ways to trudge through that. Trans fats for example are unequivocally unhealthy and their consumption should be avoided entirely. Healthy encompasses more than something being non-toxic, I take a very analytical approach and essentially place a healthy diet as something that hits your recommended nutrient quotas.
So for example,
Yes, but it’s not solely the fat. Junk food uses the trifecta of sugar, salt and fat to become pleasing and potentially addictive. 5g of salt a day is the maximum recommended amount, but most people consume more than that – a Whopper at Burger King contains 9 grams of salt. It’s also the calories and the feeling of fullness; many people (it doesn’t seem to affect everyone) report still feeling hungry after eating fast food or junk food which encourages them to eat something more. The whopper I mentioned contains 678 calories already (just the simplest whopper with no cheese), where most people need ~2k every day, which is honestly not so bad, I expected worse lol (but of course people usually add cheese and extra patties in it).
Reducing your carb intake is actually healthy, as high-carb diets are a driver of type 2 diabetes. Fibres (a type of carbs) are also very important, and white rice has almost none whereas parboiled rice has 4 times the contents.
I agree with and am aware of many things you wrote.
Yes, that is why I said a Balanced diet should be vouched for. Adding more, a well researched and analyzed balanced diet that, as I said, is according to the physical requirements of the person.
As someone who lives in India, the society here is dominated by Brahmanvadi culture and they force highly carbohydrate rich diets on their people, this leads to malnutrition if other nutrients are not supplied in case of most of the lower class and caste families and fattening in case of more well off families. My family comes in the second group and I have been trying to combat this error in our lifestyle however my parents are very resilient to that change towards a more scientific approach. They simply do not look at food through a scientific lens which is implied considering they are religious.
Well yes, there are definitely financial and distributory constraints. Taking India as an example where 80 Crore people out of 130 Crore are food insecure and rely on the government to procure grains, only grains. Their diets are quite restrictive and it is evident in their physique. I was speaking more or less with the assumption that the reader can afford to be able to make necessary changes to their diet. Considering they are on lemmy afterall.
Yes, that is what a balanced diet is.
Yes, to maximize their profits, Food Corporations use these methods. The consumption can still be limited and neutralized by exercise of course. Of course it is not recommended to introduce regular consumption of Fast Food to diet but that one occasional treat won’t do much harm. You only have one life afterall.
So for example, I have cut out all added sugar in my food and substituted them with Stevia or Sucralose only when necessary, usually milk or Coffee. I also try to self serve so that I take only as much as I require. Because as a student, I really do not need too many calories.
I am wary, yes.