Brown Rice vs White Rice – Know the Difference!

You’re stocking up your groceries as you hunker down as the Circuit Breaker kicks in. You have to pick up rice, another opportunity to choose brown rice, oft-quoted as the healthier version. But you never really knew why people say that. Well, time for you to find out. Tropika Club shares the true story behind this millennial rivalry: Brown Rice vs White Rice 

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The Key Difference between Brown Rice and White Rice 

We already have a bunch of foods that we associate the ‘brown’, whole grains version as the healthier, more nutritional counterpart, such as brown rice, wheat bread, and wheat pasta. We get brown rice when we leave the bran and germ in place during the milling process of rice. Brown rice is a type of whole-grains because of this. But why do so many experts recommend brown rice? 

Packing a Nutritious Punch 

Why is brown rice healthier than white rice? Whole-grain foods help in reducing cholesterol and lowering the risk of stroke, heart diseases, and Type 2 Diabetes. For brown rice, with its bran and germ still intact, it contains more vitamins, minerals, fibre than white rice. At the same time, brown rice has similar levels of carbohydrates, energy and protein. 

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Four Minerals and Nutrients in Brown Rice You Should Know: 

1. Fibre

People go on and on about this. Nevertheless, fibre is one of the most important elements of a healthy diet. It may be most known as a relief for constipation, but here are some other functions you may not realise: 

• Helps manage weight as it makes you feel full faster 
• Keeps cholesterol levels in check 
• Regulates blood sugar levels 
• Nourishes gut bacteria 
• Reduces risks of heart disease 

2. Manganese

Manganese is a component for one of the most important antioxidants in your body, the enzyme superoxide dismutase. This antioxidant neutralises the free radicals in your body, preventing the cells in your body from getting damaged by free radicals. This mineral is also essential for your body’s energy production processes. 

3. Magnesium

With an average serving of cooked brown rice, you actually absorb around 11 per cent of the recommended daily amount of magnesium. It’s necessary for blood coagulation, cellular production, and bone development in your body. 

4. Selenium

Selenium is an essential element in your body’s immunity and the production of the thyroid hormone. Not to mention, it protects antioxidants too. As it works with Vitamin E, selenium protects the cells in your body from cancer as well. 

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Should you worry about phytates? 

As you dig deeper about brown rice, you may come across phytates, or phytic acid, which some say could hinder the absorption of nutrients and minerals. Phytates bind more easily with calcium, iron, and zinc, preventing your body from absorbing it. It’s been dubbed as an ‘anti-nutrient’ as a result. But there’s a deeper story to that. 

Phytates can be found in nuts, seeds, and a few other whole-grain foods as well. And most of them have enough of the enzyme phytase to break down phytic acid. Since we humans can’t produce phytase, sprouting, fermenting, or even just soaking your brown rice can reduce its level of phytic acid. 

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Starting a brown rice diet? Here’s a few tips: 

There’s a whole array of brown rice varieties, with the colour differences coming from the amount of colour pigment (anthocyanins) in the rice bran. In the same vein, different fatty acids and aromatic compounds give each brown rice variety its own unique flavour and aroma. So why not switch up your brown rice diet with the different kinds of brown rice so you can taste all the different flavours and textures! 

At the end of the day, the brown rice vs white rice rivalry is not a rigid dichotomy. It’s perfectly fine if you continue eating white rice, you only have to maintain a well-balanced diet. Want to try adding brown rice to your daily diet but never liked the taste? Try out these delicious recipes for brown rice we’ve found. 

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Tropika Club is always looking for new and exciting content to feature in their magazine and they value the input of our readers. If you have any noteworthy content or articles that you believe would be a great addition to Tropika Club’s magazine, we are open to suggestions and encourage you to reach out to us via email at [email protected]. By doing so, Tropika Club values your expertise and knowledge in the matter and appreciates your willingness to help. We will review your recommendations and update our list accordingly

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