Brown rice is a diet mainstay for a reason: it’s nutritious, simple to prepare, and infinitely adaptable in the kitchen.So,is brown rice good for weight loss?
For good reason, health experts have been harping on the benefits of eating whole grains in our diet. Whole grains are high in fiber, which keeps us fuller for longer, aids digestion, boosts metabolism, regulates blood sugar levels, and promotes intestinal health.
Is Brown Rice A Fad?
So the brown rice craze isn’t simply a trend; it’s actually beneficial. The outer layer of rice, known as bran, contains the majority of the nutrients, which is removed during processing in the case of white rice.
You’re left with nothing but empty calories as a result. According to a study conducted by Tufts University researchers in Massachusetts, replacing white rice with brown rice accelerates weight loss and is similar to a 30-minute brisk walk!
While eating brown rice for weight loss without making other dietary modifications is unlikely to result in significant weight loss, it has been shown to have some weight-loss effects.
Serve brown rice as part of a calorie-controlled diet with healthy, diet-friendly foods, and stick to a regular exercise regimen for long-term weight loss success.
Brown rice has a higher fibre content than white rice, which can help you lose weight. Furthermore, brown rice has more nutritious value than white rice.
Calories in Brown Rice
When it comes to losing weight, the results are decided by calories in vs. calories out, and the best results come from eating high-quality calories. When you eat less calories than you expend, your body begins to burn fat to compensate, and you lose weight.
Brown rice isn’t exactly low in calories, but it may supplement a calorie-controlled diet with nutritional value.
On a 1,500-calorie weight-loss regimen, a cup of cooked brown rice provides 248 calories, about the same as a cup of cooked white rice, or around 16% of your calorie “budget.” According to the USDA, it has slightly more calories than quinoa, which has 222 calories per cup.
Fiber Helps You Lose Weight
Brown rice nutrition helps with weight loss in part because of its fiber content. According to a 2015 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, while implementing various lifestyle modifications is ideal for weight loss, simply eating more fibre will help you attain your objectives.
The authors compared the weight-loss benefits of the DASH diet — a heart-healthy diet — to the weight-loss benefits of simply consuming more fiber without making any other dietary changes. While the study participants who followed the DASH diet lost the most weight, those who just ate more fiber lost weight as well.
To see health benefits, you’ll need to consume 30 grammes of fiber each day.A cup of brown rice contains 3.2 grammes of fiber, which is more than 13% of your daily fiber requirement.
White rice, on the other hand, contains only 0.6 grammes of fiber per serving, according to the USDA.
Weight Loss and Brown Rice
There’s also some evidence that brown rice can help you lose weight. Women with Type 2 diabetes who converted from white to brown rice dropped weight and improved their blood pressure, according to a 2014 study published in the Journal of Nutritional Science and Vitaminology.
Another 2014 study published in the British Journal of Nutrition looked at the effect of brown rice on visceral fat, the metabolically active abdominal fat that surrounds your organs and poses a major health concern.
The researchers discovered that moving from white to brown rice improved visceral fat reduction, but that returning to white rice restored the participants’ previous weight.
Finally, a preliminary test tube study published in the journal Lipids in Health and Disease in 2014 discovered that brown rice extract interacts with fat cells, inhibiting new fat cell formation and stimulating fat burning.
While this test tube study does not explain exactly how brown rice aids in fat loss in adults, it does provide one possible explanation.
The Advantages of Whole Grains
While it may take some getting used to, incorporating whole grains into your regular diet can benefit you in a variety of ways. According to the study, eating extra fiber can help you lose 100 calories every day.
Experts observed that this difference is about the same as what a brisk half-hour walk would burn off. We’ve all heard about the benefits of brisk walking and how even 30 minutes of it can help you stay healthy and disease-free.
Imagine if brown rice could assist you in achieving the same goal! Researchers fed two groups of participants meals with equal total energy, total fat, and quantity of fruit, vegetable, and protein servings for the study.
The sole change was the grain source. Whole grains including brown rice and whole wheat were consumed by one group, whereas white rice and refined white flour were ingested by the other.
Serving Ideas for Brown Rice
Brown rice is frequently served simple as a healthy but dull side dish, although this isn’t always the case. For a more savoury side, toss your brown rice with lemon juice and basil and mint chiffonade, or prepare a little grain salad with a spoonful of cranberries and chopped walnuts, then top with an orange and balsamic vinaigrette.
For a nutritious, Tex-Mex-inspired dinner, start with brown rice and top it with black beans, toasted corn, red peppers, tomatoes, and avocado. To infuse your favourite vegetable soups with additional complex carbohydrates for long-lasting energy, add a handful of cooked brown rice.
Grains In Their Entirety
They discovered that eating a diet rich in whole grains caused people to build a quicker metabolism and burn more calories. In addition, their digestive systems absorbed fewer calories. Apart from these advantages, their immune systems showed a’modest’ improvement.
People who ate whole grains had more T-cells, which fight infections. The number of helpful gut bacteria has also increased. The study lasted eight weeks and involved 81 men and women between the ages of 40 and 65.
Dr. Phil Karl, the study’s lead author, stated, “Many prior research have demonstrated that whole grains and dietary fiber can reduce the risk of chronic disease.
This research serves to quantify how whole grains and fiber help with weight loss and lends credence to prior reports of links between greater whole grain and fiber consumption, reduced body weight, and improved health.” In the United Kingdom, an adult should consume 30 grammes of fibre per day, but most people consume far less, around 12 grammes on average.
