Nutritious Foods

Wheat - Nutritional Analysis

2009-12-04T22:33:00.000-08:00

Wheat is a worldwide cultivated grass from many centuries. Studies found that wheat is being cultivated worldwide in many countries in the East well before 9000 B.C. It is the most produced and consumed cereal in the recent times after maize and rice. Wheat is the most important cereal crop in the world and ubiquitous in the food culture of North America and many other regions of the world. Bread, pasta, bagels, crackers, cakes, and muffins just begin to describe the list of foods made with this grain.

Wheat, in its natural unrefined state, features a host of important nutrients. Therefore, to receive benefit from the wholesomeness of wheat it is important to choose wheat products made from whole wheat flour rather than those that are refined and stripped of their natural goodness.

Wheat is a staple food in many parts of North - West India. Unlike South, wheat is consumed more in the Northern parts of India. People in the states like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra make Roti or Phulka or Chapati - an unleavened flatbread made of whole wheat flour. Rotis are served as breakfast; lunch and dinner with vide range of curries. They hardly eat any rice in their diet. Roti made of wheat flour is rich in nutrition and has very low in calories. That is the reason why people from Northern part of India are found slim and healthy when compared to the people from South. In the southern states of India like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka a single individual consumes approximately 1 kg of Rice a day (2400 calories approximately only through rice). Where as you can approximately make 60 Rotis from 1 Kg of wheat flour. More importantly a person hardly consumes 25 Rotis maximum in a day (1000 calories approximately). This is the reason why it keeps you fit and slim. Eating polished white Rice in large quantities is always harmful. It increases the size of your luggage in the body. Rice is the major matter of concern for the people here in the south. Because eating excess of Rice leads to obesity and many diseases associated with obesity. Obesity is becoming a major cause for many stringent diseases like Diabetes, Excess Cholesterol, Liver Cirrhosis, Thyroid deficiency, Heart Attacks etc. As the proverb goes “Less Luggage……more comfort….!” Low weight is always healthy and comfortable. This goes well for big people. People who are big in size do really understand what that means to them. They know how it feels to be big. Therefore people who desire to burn their calories and cut their weight; need to say good bye to Rice and hello to Rotis. One more important point! People who want to lose weight should consume plain Rotis or Phulkas without Oil, Butter and Ghee. I would like to add another important point here. People these days, especially in the cities have started using super refined wheat flour and semolina (Sooji or Rava). According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju, these polished and super refined flours are like white poisons. They are the main source of diabetes and many other diseases in the long run. The moment man started to refine things he started to dig his own graveyard inviting all kind problems for his health. We need to learn a lot from our ancestors who lived healthy and survived longer by eating natural and unprocessed food.

Let us try to analyze the nutritional value of Phulkas made with 1 cup of wheat flour which is equal to 182 grams or 4 to 5 Phulkas or Rotis approximately.

Eating 4 to 5 phulkas gives you 151.06 calories which is quite low when compared to Rice. This many phulkas are well enough to fill your stomach. You might not ask more phulkas than this. Even if you do there is no harm in eating another two or three. But 1 cup of Rice might add 400-500 calories and makes you heavy and tight.

The Rotis contain very low fat content of 0.44gms, 123.73 mgs of Potassium and many other minerals and vitamins. More importantly it is a very rich source of fiber which stands around 16.38gms. As we discussed earlier, fiber plays a vital role in cleaning our body. It acts as a brush that cleans the waste within our body. For more nutritional details go through the table enlisted below.

I hope you find the information useful. In my next update I will try to bring the health benefits of eating whole wheat in more detail. Till then keep watching the space for updates….

Wheat Cooked (Note: "--" indicates data is unavailable)
amount	1.00 cup
total weight	182.00 g
Basic Components
nutrient	amount	%DV
calories	151.06	8.39
calories from fat	3.93
calories from saturated fat	0.69
protein	5.61 g	11.22
carbohydrates	33.82 g	11.27
dietary fiber	8.19 g	32.76
soluble fiber	1.38 g
insoluble fiber	6.81 g
sugar - total	0.36 g
monosaccharides	-- g
disaccharides	0.83 g
other carbs	25.26 g
fat - total	0.44 g	0.68
saturated fat	0.08 g	0.40
mono fat	0.06 g	0.25
poly fat	0.18 g	0.75
trans fatty acids	-- g
cholesterol	0.00 mg	0.00
water	141.52 g
ash	0.62 g
Vitamins
nutrient	amount	%DV
vitamin A IU	0.00 IU	0.00
vitamin A RE	0.00 RE
A - carotenoid	0.00 RE	0.00
A - retinol	0.00 RE
A - beta carotene	0.00 mcg
thiamin - B1	0.10 mg	6.67
riboflavin - B2	0.05 mg	2.94
niacin - B3	1.82 mg	9.10
niacin equiv	3.28 mg
vitamin B6	0.15 mg	7.50
vitamin B12	0.00 mcg	0.00
biotin	-- mcg	--
vitamin C	0.00 mg	0.00
vitamin D IU	0.00 IU	0.00
vitamin D mcg	0.00 mcg
vitamin E alpha equiv	0.05 mg	0.25
vitamin E IU	0.08 IU
vitamin E mg	0.55 mg
folate	32.76 mcg	8.19
vitamin K	0.91 mcg	1.14
pantothenic acid	0.63 mg	6.30
Minerals
nutrient	amount	%DV
boron	-- mcg
calcium	18.20 mg	1.82
chloride	-- mg
chromium	-- mcg	--
copper	0.14 mg	7.00
fluoride	-- mg	--
iodine	-- mcg	--
iron	1.75 mg	9.72
magnesium	58.24 mg	14.56
manganese	1.11 mg	55.50
molybdenum	-- mcg	--
phosphorus	72.80 mg	7.28
potassium	123.76 mg	3.54
selenium	1.09 mcg	1.56
sodium	9.10 mg	0.38
zinc	1.04 mg	6.93
Saturated Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
4:0 butyric	0.00 g
6:0 caproic	0.00 g
8:0 caprylic	0.00 g
10:0 capric	0.00 g
12:0 lauric	0.00 g
14:0 myristic	0.00 g
15:0 pentadecanoic	-- g
16:0 palmitic	0.07 g
17:0 margaric	-- g
18:0 stearic	0.00 g
20:0 arachidic	-- g
22:0 behenate	-- g
24:0 lignoceric	-- g
Mono Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
14:1 myristol	0.00 g
15:1 pentadecenoic	0.00 g
16:1 palmitol	0.00 g
17:1 heptadecenoic	0.00 g
18:1 oleic	0.05 g
20:1 eicosen	0.00 g
22:1 erucic	0.00 g
24:1 nervonic	0.00 g
Poly Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
18:2 linoleic	0.17 g
18:3 linolenic	0.01 g
18:4 stearidon	0.00 g
20:3 eicosatrienoic	0.00 g
20:4 arachidon	0.00 g
20:5 EPA	0.00 g
22:5 DPA	0.00 g
22:6 DHA	0.00 g
Other Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
omega 3 fatty acids	0.01 g	0.42
omega 6 fatty acids	0.17 g
Amino Acids
nutrient	amount	%DV
alanine	0.20 g
arginine	0.26 g
aspartate	0.29 g
cystine	0.13 g	31.71
glutamate	1.77 g
glycine	0.23 g
histidine	0.13 g	10.08
isoleucine	0.21 g	18.26
leucine	0.38 g	15.02
lysine	0.15 g	6.38
methionine	0.09 g	12.16
phenylalanine	0.26 g	21.85
proline	0.58 g
serine	0.26 g
threonine	0.16 g	12.90
tryptophan	0.09 g	28.13
tyrosine	0.16 g	16.49
valine	0.25 g	17.01
Other
nutrient	amount	%DV
alcohol	0.00 g
caffeine	0.00 mg
artif sweetener total	-- mg
aspartame	-- mg
saccharin	-- mg
sugar alcohol	-- g
glycerol	-- g
inositol	-- g
mannitol	-- g
sorbitol	-- g
xylitol	-- g
organic acids	-- mg
acetic acid	-- mg
citric acid	-- mg
lactic acid	-- mg
malic acid	-- mg
choline	-- mg	--
taurine	-- mg

Health Benefits of Brown Rice

2009-10-30T06:21:00.000-07:00

In my previous updates you found a detailed explanation on Brown Rice and a detailed nutrient analysis of brown rice. Today I am going to explain the real health benefits of serving Brown Rice over White Rice. After going through the information given below you are going to understand why Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju is emphasizing so much on the use of Brown Rice over White Rice. No person in India had so far advertised the health benefits of Brown Rice in such an intensive way than Dr. Raju himself. It is due to the intensive appeal to the people by Dr. Raju on the use of Brown Rice through his speeches on TV, Print and other media of communication over the past 10 or 12 years millions have got benefited. If I am not wrong most of us wouldn’t have known what brown rice is? a couple of years ago. Still there are plenty of people who do not know what the brown rice is. I believe still there is a need to popularize the use of brown rice in a large scale. The people of Andhra Pradesh are addicted to eat polished fine rice. To be honest we are accustomed of eating polished fine rice. We don’t chew food; instead we swallow food. No one is ready to eat large grain of rice. That is the reason why people still cannot adopt the use of brown rice in large scale. The Brown Rice is not only a delicious dish but also the power house of energy.

Here are some of the ways in which the nutrients supplied by brown rice can make an important difference in your health: (The Data is provided by World Health Foods).

1. Brown Rice Produces Energy and Protects from Antioxidants:

Just one cup of brown rice will provide you with 88.0% of the daily value for manganese. This trace mineral helps produce energy from protein and carbohydrates and is involved in the synthesis of fatty acids, which are important for a healthy nervous system, and in the production of cholesterol, which is used by the body to produce sex hormones. Manganese is also a critical component of a very important antioxidant enzyme called superoxide dismutase. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) is found inside the body's mitochondria (the oxygen-based energy factories inside most of our cells) where it provides protection against damage from the free radicals produced during energy production.

2. Brown Rice helps in reducing Weight:

People eating Brown Rice do not put on weight. The high percentage of fiber and lecithin content present in it doesn’t change much into Carbohydrates. Where as the white rice devoid of these contents makes you fat quickly.

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition underscores the importance of choosing whole grains such as brown rice rather than refined grain, i.e., white rice, to maintain a healthy body weight. In this Harvard Medical School / Brigham and Women's Hospital study, which collected data on over 74,000 female nurses aged 38-63 years over a 12 year period, weight gain was inversely associated with the intake of high-fiber, whole-grain foods but positively related to the intake of refined-grain foods. Not only did women who consumed more whole grains consistently weigh less than those who ate less of these fiber-rich foods, but those consuming the most dietary fiber from whole grains were 49% less likely to gain weight compared to those eating foods made from refined grains.

3. Brown Rice is Rich in Fiber and Selenium:

For people worried about colon cancer risk, brown rice packs a double punch by being a concentrated source of the fiber needed to minimize the amount of time cancer-causing substances spend in contact with colon cells, and being a very good source of selenium, a trace mineral that has been shown to substantially reduce the risk of colon cancer.

In addition to supplying 14.0% of the daily value for fiber, a cup of cooked brown rice provides 27.3% of the DV for selenium, an important benefit since many Americans do not get enough selenium in their diets, yet this trace mineral is of fundamental importance to human health. Selenium is an essential component of several major metabolic pathways, including thyroid hormone metabolism, antioxidant defense systems, and immune function. Accumulated evidence from prospective studies, intervention trials and studies on animal models of cancer has suggested a strong inverse correlation between selenium intake and cancer incidence. Several mechanisms have been suggested to explain the cancer-preventive activities of selenium. Selenium has been shown to induce DNA repair and synthesis in damaged cells, to inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells, and to induce their apoptosis, the self-destruct sequence the body uses to eliminate worn out or abnormal cells.

In addition, selenium is incorporated at the active site of many proteins, including glutathione peroxidase, which is particularly important for cancer protection. One of the body's most powerful antioxidant enzymes, glutathione peroxidase is used in the liver to detoxify a wide range of potentially harmful molecules. When levels of glutathione peroxidase are too low, these toxic molecules are not disarmed and wreak havoc on any cells with which they come in contact, damaging their cellular DNA and promoting the development of cancer cells.

Not only does selenium play a critical role in cancer prevention as a cofactor of glutathione peroxidase, selenium also works with vitamin E in numerous other vital antioxidant systems throughout the body. These powerful antioxidant actions make selenium helpful in the prevention not only of cancer, but also of heart disease, and for decreasing the symptoms of asthma and the pain and inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis.

4. Lower Cholesterol with Whole Brown Rice:

Here's yet another reason to rely on whole foods, such as brown rice, for your healthy way of eating. The oil in whole brown rice lowers cholesterol.

When Marlene Most and colleagues from Louisiana State University evaluated the effects of rice bran and rice bran oil on cholesterol levels in volunteers with moderately elevated cholesterol levels, they found that rice bran oil lowered their LDL (bad) cholesterol.

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, was divided into two parts. First, 26 subjects ate a diet including 13-22g of dietary fiber each day for three weeks, after which 13 switched to a diet that added defatted rice bran to double their fiber intake for five weeks. In the second part of the study, a randomized crossover trial, 14 subjects ate a diet with rice bran oil for 10 weeks.

While the diet including only defatted rice bran did not lower cholesterol, the one containing rice bran oil lowered LDL cholesterol by 7%. Since all the diets contained similar fatty acids, the researchers concluded that the reduction in cholesterol seen in that receiving rice bran oil must have been due to other constituents such as the unsaponifiable compounds found in rice bran oil. The scientists suggest that the unsaponifiables present in rice bran oil could become important functional foods for cardiovascular health. But why extract just one beneficial compound from brown rice when you can reap all the cardio protective benefits supplied by the matrix of nutrients naturally present in this delicious whole food? In addition to unsaponifiables, this whole grain also supplies hefty doses of heart-healthy fiber, magnesium, and B vitamins.

5. Significant Cardiovascular Benefits for Postmenopausal Women:

Eating a serving of whole grains, such as brown rice, at least 6 times each week is an especially good idea for postmenopausal women with high cholesterol, high blood pressure or other signs of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

A 3-year prospective study of over 200 postmenopausal women with CVD, published in the American Heart Journal, shows that those eating at least 6 servings of whole grains each week experienced both:

Slowed progression of atherosclerosis, the build-up of plaque that narrows the vessels through which blood flows, and

Less progression in stenosis, the narrowing of the diameter of arterial passageways.

6. Lignans Protect against Heart Disease:

One type of phytonutrient especially abundant in whole grains including brown rice are plant lignans, which are converted by friendly flora in our intestines into mammalian lignans, including one called enterolactone that is thought to protect against breast and other hormone-dependent cancers as well as heart disease. In addition to whole grains, nuts, seeds and berries are rich sources of plant lignans, and vegetables, fruits, and beverages such as coffee, tea and wine also contain some. When blood levels of enterolactone were measured in over 850 postmenopausal women in a Danish study published in the Journal of Nutrition, women eating the most whole grains were found to have significantly higher blood levels of this protective lignan. Women who ate more cabbage and leafy vegetables also had higher enterolactone levels.

7. Brown Rice Substantially Lower Type - 2 Diabetes Risk:

According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju the white rice makes sugar patients suffer more! The white rice gets digested quickly, turns into glucose and thereby increases the quantity of sugar level in the body. On the contrary, one cannot eat as much of brown rice as the white rice because of the large size of the grains and its nature. It also gets digested slowly due to the fibrous contents present in it; as a result of which the glucose takes time to join the blood stream. Therefore the sugar level in the body doesn’t increase quickly. Hence, the brown rice relatively helps in constraining the increase of sugar level in the body.

Brown rice and other whole grains are a rich source of magnesium, a mineral that acts as a co-factor for more than 300 enzymes, including enzymes involved in the body's use of glucose and insulin secretion.

8. Brown Rice acts an Anti Biotic:

Magnesium, another nutrient for which brown rice is a good source, has been shown in studies to be helpful for reducing the severity of asthma, lowering high blood pressure, reducing the frequency of migraine headaches, and reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke. How does magnesium accomplish all this? Magnesium helps regulate nerve and muscle tone by balancing the action of calcium. In many nerve cells, magnesium serves as Nature's own calcium channel blocker, preventing calcium from rushing into the nerve cell and activating the nerve. By blocking calcium's entry, magnesium keeps our nerves (and the blood vessels and muscles they ennervate) relaxed. If our diet provides us with too little magnesium, however, calcium can gain free entry, and nerve cells can become over activated, sending too many messages and causing excessive contraction. Insufficient magnesium can thus contribute to high blood pressure, muscle spasms (including spasms of the heart muscle or the spasms of the airways symptomatic of asthma), and migraine headaches, as well as muscle cramps, tension, soreness and fatigue.

But that's far from all magnesium does for you. Magnesium, as well as calcium, is necessary for healthy bones. About two-thirds of the magnesium in the human body is found in our bones. Some helps give bones their physical structure, while the rest is found on the surface of the bone where it is stored for the body to draw upon as needed. Brown rice can help you keep those storage sites replenished and ready to meet your body's needs. A cup of brown rice will give you 21.0% of the daily value for magnesium.

In addition to the niacin it supplies, brown rice may also help raise blood levels of nitric oxide, a small molecule known to improve blood vessel dilation and to inhibit oxidative (free radical) damage of cholesterol and the adhesion of white cells to the vascular wall (two important steps in the development of atherosclerotic plaques). A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests that diets high in rice protein can help protect against atherosclerosis by increasing blood levels of nitric oxide.

9. A Good Source of Fiber:

The health benefits of brown rice continue with its fiber; a cup of brown rice provides 14.0% of the daily value for fiber, which has been shown to reduce high cholesterol levels, one more way brown rice helps prevent atherosclerosis. Fiber also helps out by keeping blood sugar levels under control, so brown rice is an excellent grain choice for people with diabetes. As we mentioned above, the fiber in brown rice can also help to protect you against colon cancer since fiber binds to cancer-causing chemicals, keeping them away from the cells lining the colon, plus it can help normalize bowel function, reducing constipation.

10. Fiber from Whole Grains and Fruit Protective against Breast Cancer:

When researchers looked at how much fiber 35,972 participants in the UK Women's Cohort Study ate, they found a diet rich in fiber from whole grains, such as brown rice, and fruit offered significant protection against breast cancer for pre-menopausal women.

11. Brown Rice helps Prevent Gallstones:

Eating foods high in insoluble fiber, such as brown rice, can help women avoid gallstones, shows a study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology.

Studying the overall fiber intake and types of fiber consumed over a 16 year period by over 69,000 women in the Nurses Health Study, researchers found that those consuming the most fiber overall (both soluble and insoluble) had a 13% lower risk of developing gallstones compared to women consuming the fewest fiber-rich foods.

12. Brown Rice helps relieve Constipation:

Brown Rice is a rich source of fiber. According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju fiber acts as a brush / broom to clean all the dust and garbage left inside of our body. Eating high source of fiber food like brown rice helps in the free motion of the stool relieving you from the problem of constipation.

Nutrition Analysis of Brown Rice

2009-10-25T00:02:00.000-07:00

In my previous post I published some information about Brown Rice. Today I am about to publish in-depth nutrient analysis of 195 kilos of cooked brown rice based on the analysis published by World health foods which is as below:

The highlights of the analysis are:

1. The Brown Rice contains 216.45gms of Calories, 44.77 gms of Carbohydrates and 5.03gms of Proteins. You don’t find much of difference in these 3 categories when compared with white rice. White Rice too contain almost similar amount of calories, carbohydrates and proteins.

2. Brown Rice is rich in dietary fiber. Dietary fiber is very essential to clean our inner body. It helps in reduction of cholesterol. According to Dr. Mantena Satyanarayana Raju fiber acts as a broom which cleans the cholesterol, triglyceride and all other garbage in our body. 1 Cup cooked brown rice contains 3.51gms of dietary fiber where as cooked white rice contains 0.74gms of fiber.

3. Brown Rice contains a total fat content of 1.76gms which is again higher than white rice which contains 0.205gms of fats. Brown Rice contains 0.64gms and 0.63 of mono saturated and poly saturated fats which again help in increasing HDL (Good) Cholesterol and reducing LDL (Bad) Cholesterol.

4. Moreover, Brown Rice is rich in Vitamin B complex. It contains 0.19 mg of Thiamin B1, 0.05mg of Riboflavin B2, 2.98mg of niacin B3 and 0.28mg of Vitamin B6. Whereas, 67% of Vitamin B3, 80% of Vitamin B1 and 90% of Vitamin B6 is lost during milling process in white rice. You don’t need to add daily dose of B complex capsules if you eat brown rice regularly.

5. Brown Rice is very rich in minerals. It contains 19.50mg of Calcium, 448.50mg of Chloride, 0.20mg of Copper, 0.82mg of Iron, 83.85mg of Magnesium, 1.76mg of Manganese, 161.85mg of Phosphorus, 83.85mg of Potassium, 9.75mg of Sodium and 1.23mg of Zinc. Whereas, 60% of Iron, 80% of Potassium and almost half of the Manganese, Phosphorus, Copper and Zinc are lost in case of fully milled and polished white rice.

For further nutrient analysis of cooked brown rice kindly go through the table provided below by World Health Foods. I recommend everybody irrespective of age to use Brown Rice instead of White Rice for better health. I have been using it since 9 months and believe me its really good for health. In my next update, I am about to publish the benefits of Brown Rice. So… Keep watching the space for updates….

Brown rice, cooked (Note: "--" indicates data is unavailable)
amount	1.00 cup
total weight	195.00 g
Basic Components
nutrient	amount	%DV
calories	216.45	12.03
calories from fat	15.80
calories from saturated fat	3.16
protein	5.03 g	10.06
carbohydrates	44.77 g	14.92
dietary fiber	3.51 g	14.04
soluble fiber	0.39 g
insoluble fiber	3.12 g
sugar - total	0.39 g
disaccharides	0.39 g
other carbs	40.87 g
fat - total	1.76 g	2.71
saturated fat	0.35 g	1.75
mono fat	0.64 g	2.67
poly fat	0.63 g	2.63
trans fatty acids	-- g
cholesterol	0.00 mg	0.00
water	142.53 g
ash	0.90 g
Vitamins
nutrient	amount	%DV
vitamin A IU	0.00 IU	0.00
vitamin A RE	0.00 RE
A - carotenoid	0.00 RE	0.00
A - retinol	0.00 RE
A - beta carotene	0.00 mcg
thiamin - B1	0.19 mg	12.67
riboflavin - B2	0.05 mg	2.94
niacin - B3	2.98 mg	14.90
niacin equiv	4.05 mg
vitamin B6	0.28 mg	14.00
vitamin B12	0.00 mcg	0.00
biotin	1.54 mcg	0.51
vitamin C	0.00 mg	0.00
vitamin D IU	0.00 IU	0.00
vitamin D mcg	0.00 mcg
vitamin E alpha equiv	1.40 mg	7.00
vitamin E IU	2.09 IU
vitamin E mg	1.40 mg
folate	7.80 mcg	1.95
vitamin K	1.17 mcg	1.46
pantothenic acid	0.56 mg	5.60
Minerals
nutrient	amount	%DV
boron	-- mcg
calcium	19.50 mg	1.95
chloride	448.50 mg
chromium	-- mcg	--
copper	0.20 mg	10.00
fluoride	-- mg	--
iodine	-- mcg	--
iron	0.82 mg	4.56
magnesium	83.85 mg	20.96
manganese	1.76 mg	88.00
molybdenum	-- mcg	--
phosphorus	161.85 mg	16.18
potassium	83.85 mg	2.40
selenium	19.11 mcg	27.30
sodium	9.75 mg	0.41
zinc	1.23 mg	8.20
Saturated Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
4:0 butyric	0.00 g
6:0 caproic	0.00 g
8:0 caprylic	0.00 g
10:0 capric	0.00 g
12:0 lauric	0.00 g
14:0 myristic	0.01 g
15:0 pentadecanoic	-- g
16:0 palmitic	0.30 g
17:0 margaric	-- g
18:0 stearic	0.03 g
20:0 arachidic	-- g
22:0 behenate	-- g
24:0 lignoceric	-- g
Mono Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
14:1 myristol	-- g
15:1 pentadecenoic	-- g
16:1 palmitol	0.01 g
17:1 heptadecenoic	-- g
18:1 oleic	0.63 g
20:1 eicosen	0.00 g
22:1 erucic	0.00 g
24:1 nervonic	-- g
Poly Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
18:2 linoleic	0.60 g
18:3 linolenic	0.03 g
18:4 stearidon	0.00 g
20:3 eicosatrienoic	0.00 g
20:4 arachidon	0.00 g
20:5 EPA	0.00 g
22:5 DPA	0.00 g
22:6 DHA	0.00 g
Other Fats
nutrient	amount	%DV
omega 3 fatty acids	0.03 g	1.25
omega 6 fatty acids	0.60 g
Amino Acids
nutrient	amount	%DV
alanine	0.29 g
arginine	0.38 g
aspartate	0.47 g
cystine	0.06 g	14.63
glutamate	1.02 g
glycine	0.25 g
histidine	0.13 g	10.08
isoleucine	0.21 g	18.26
leucine	0.42 g	16.60
lysine	0.19 g	8.09
methionine	0.11 g	14.86
phenylalanine	0.26 g	21.85
proline	0.24 g
serine	0.26 g
threonine	0.19 g	15.32
tryptophan	0.06 g	18.75
tyrosine	0.19 g	19.59
valine	0.29 g	19.73
Other
nutrient	amount	%DV
alcohol	0.00 g
caffeine	0.00 mg
artif sweetener total	-- mg
aspartame	-- mg
saccharin	-- mg
sugar alcohol	-- g
glycerol	-- g
inositol	-- g
mannitol	-- g
sorbitol	-- g
xylitol	-- g
organic acids	-- mg
acetic acid	-- mg
citric acid	-- mg
lactic acid	-- mg
malic acid	-- mg
choline	-- mg	--
taurine	-- mg

Mudi Biyyam - Dampudu Biyyam - Brown Rice - Unpolished Rice

2009-10-16T08:19:00.001-07:00

Today I have started a new blog about nutritious foods available across the globe. Here I am going to discuss and try to focus on world’s best and nutritious products, their history, nutritional values and their advantages. To begin with I have decided to publish about Brown Rice. It is simply because in some parts of World, the word “to eat” literally means “to eat rice”. India is one such place. In particular Rice is the staple food for the people of the southern states of India viz., Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. People of these states usually do not feel satisfied even if they miss a single meal a day without eating Rice. All varieties of Rice are available throughout the year, supplying as much as half of the daily calories of the India’s population. People begin and end up eating rice in these parts of the state as their breakfast, lunch and dinner. Such is the importance of Rice here. It is a kind of blessing by Nature for these people out here. Unfortunately, this great Rice has become a serious health hazard only due to the man made mistakes. Earlier people used to eat raw form of rice called Mudi Biyyam/Dampudu Biyyam/Brown Rice/Unpolished Rice. But today people are addicted of eating processed or fortified rice which is popularly known as White Rice in most parts of the world.

Brown Rice and White Rice have similar amounts of Calories, Carbohydrates and Proteins. The main differences between these two forms of Rice lie in processing and nutritional contents. The process that produces brown rice removes only the outermost layer, the hull, of the rice kernel and is the least damaging to its nutritional value. The complete milling and polishing that converts brown rice into white rice destroys 67% of the vitamin B3, 80% of the vitamin B1, 90% of the vitamin B6, half of the manganese, half of the phosphorus, 60% of the iron, and all of the dietary fiber and essential fatty acids. Fully milled and polished white rice is required to be "enriched" with vitamins B1, B3 and iron. Apart from that it is rinsed and soaked in water before cooking and then cooked for at least 20 minutes of time. A part of the remaining vitamins, minerals, iron and other enzymes are washed out while rinsing and the rest is evapourated while cooking. So what is left after cooking white rice? Most probably nothing; except calories, carbohydrates and proteins. Therefore excess use of white rice is leading to the increase of calories causing obesity, diabetes, heart and other chronic diseases. According to Dr. Mantena Satynarayana Raju a research revealed that India topped the list of diabetic cases around the world and Andhra Pradesh topped the list within India. Dr. Raju reiterates most of the times “Swarna Andhra Pradesh autundi anukunnam kani porapatuna Sugar Andhra Pradesh ayyindi” which means “We dreamt of a Golden Andhra Pradesh, instead it became a Sugar Andhra Pradesh or a Diabetic Andhra Pradesh.”

Dr. Raju has been intensively trying to promote the use of Brown Rice in Andhra Pradesh through all sources of media. In the past 10 to 15 years he has been engaged in promoting healthy ways of living through his conferences, print and electronic media. His tireless efforts over the past few years are now reaping fruits to the society. A couple of year back many of us wouldn’t have known what a brown rice is. But today it is available everywhere in the Rythu Bazars and Rice stores nearby. I have been following the diet of Brown Rice regularly since 9 months and believe me it’s a powerhouse of energy. It is definitely rich in nutrition and also better in taste when compared to white rice. You don’t feel hungry all day because it actually takes long time to digest. More importantly brown rice is strictly recommended for people lacking hemoglobin, who are feeble and weak, who is suffering from low blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol.

In my next update I will be providing in-depth nutritional analysis of Brown Rice, benefits and other advantages of eating Brown Rice. So keep watching the space for more updates…