Is brown rice better than white rice?

I often get asked whether brown is really best when it comes to food choices. White products are usually softer and more comforting, whereas their brown counterparts are more fibrous and healthy-looking (and take more chewing). 

Clients often want to hear that white rice isn’t actually that bad because they prefer the texture so much...

...but if you take away the preference for the taste, white rice starts to feel less and less appealing.  If you look at the nutritional facts, brown wins hands down.

One cup of cooked brown rice contains 3.5 grams of fibre, whereas white contains only 0.7 grams!  But why?

A grain of brown rice contains all the fibre and minerals in the bran layer.  To produce white rice, this nutritious bran layer is milled away and you are left with a less nutritious simple carbohydrate (white rice). 

Five Reasons to choose Brown Rice

1. Brown rice will sustain you for longer so it aids weight loss.

2. It will maintain your digestive tract with regular bowel movements due to its high fibre content (less toxicity in the body).

3. It contains the antioxidant selenium which could help prevent cancer.

4. It contains almost three times more zinc than white rice - 'zinc deficiency plays a role in almost every major disease' (Holford, P)

5. Brown Rice is a ''whole food' so it is a more natural choice.

Brown rice takes about twice as long to cook, which sometimes puts people off, but having some ready in the fridge at all times is a great time saver. 

Enjoy it...you might actually start to prefer it (if you are not already a convert).

Josie :)