After the age of 50, eating more carbohydrates can reduce mortality! A special reminder: Don’t eat with a spoon…

This article was reviewed by Zhang Zhaomin, Master of Food Science, Senior Engineer

Man is iron and food is steel. If you don't eat for a meal, you will feel hungry.

Rice is the most important food in life and it can be said that it is indispensable every day. However, some people choose to refuse rice in order to lose weight and control blood sugar. Is this really good?

Eating too much or too little staple food,

Will affect life expectancy

A study published in The Lancet Public Health revealed a U-shaped relationship between the intake of staple foods (carbohydrates) and the risk of death:

① When the energy intake from staple foods (carbohydrates) accounts for 50%-55%, the risk of death is the lowest;

② When the energy intake from staple foods (carbohydrates) accounts for less than 40% and more than 70%, the risk of death will increase.

In general, you should not eat too much or too little carbohydrates, but eat them in moderation. If an adult needs 1500 kcal of energy per day, he should consume about 250g of carbohydrates, which is equivalent to a small bowl of rice and a small amount of fruit.

In addition, people of different ages have different needs for staple food intake.

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After the age of 50, eating more carbohydrates can reduce mortality

Scholars from the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales studied the relationship between the proportion of intake of the three major nutrients, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, and mortality:

① Under 20 years old, protein accounts for 16% of energy supply, carbohydrates and fat each account for about 42%, and the mortality rate is the lowest;

②After the age of 20, the energy supply ratio of carbohydrates gradually increases, the energy supply ratio of fat gradually decreases, the protein intake does not change much, and the mortality rate remains stable;

③ In old age (about 60 years old for men and about 70 years old for women), the energy supply of protein drops to 11%, the energy supply of fat drops to 22%, and the proportion of carbohydrates increases to 67%. At this time, the mortality rate is the lowest.

It can be seen that after the age of 50, the amount of carbohydrates should be appropriately increased, and cereals and potatoes can reach about 250~400g per day.

Eat rice healthily, do these things

So how can we eat rice more healthily?

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Choose long-grain rice, which has a lower GI

Although all rice nowadays is refined white rice, it is divided into indica rice and japonica rice, which are slightly different.

Indica rice is a long-grain rice that is mostly produced in the south. It contains a lot of amylose, has a harder texture, is less sticky, and has a glycemic index of around 50.

Japonica rice is a round-grain rice that is mostly produced in the north. It contains a lot of amylopectin, has a soft and sticky texture, and has a glycemic index of around 83.

The structure of amylopectin is loose, which makes it easier for amylase to react. At the same time, the glucose molecules are released very quickly, which causes a higher blood sugar level. Therefore, of the two, long-grain rice is more suitable for people who want to lose weight or have high blood sugar levels.

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Tips for cooking rice

①Avoid soaking rice for a long time

If rice is soaked for too long, the inorganic salts and soluble vitamins on the surface will dissolve in the water, causing a certain degree of nutritional loss. More importantly, if rice is soaked for too long, the hydrolysis rate of carbohydrates in the rice will increase, accelerating gelatinization, which may cause blood sugar to rise too quickly after eating, which is not very friendly to people who need to control blood sugar.

Recommendation: Cook the rice immediately after washing it. If you want to soak the rice to enhance its taste, soak it for 10 minutes in advance. It is best to use the water used to soak the rice to steam and cook the rice.

②Shorten the steaming time

The longer the rice is cooked, the more B vitamins are lost, and the higher the degree of gelatinization, the faster the digestion speed, and the faster the blood sugar rises.

Recommendation: Cooking rice in a pressure cooker can shorten the cooking time and reduce the loss of vitamins. At the same time, because the pot is completely sealed, it can avoid contact with excessive oxygen and reduce losses caused by oxidation.

③ Pay attention to the rice-water ratio

Rice that is slightly drier and harder is more conducive to stabilizing blood sugar, but adding too little water may cause it to not be cooked through.

Related experiments have found that when the ratio of rice to water reaches 1:2, it can be cooked just right and "whole grain rice" can be produced.

④Add some olive oil

An experiment conducted by the Food Nutrition Research Laboratory of China Agricultural University showed that adding edible oil at 1% of the weight of rice slowed down the digestion of rice and the rise in blood sugar, which is beneficial for diabetics to control their blood sugar after meals. Olive oil, in particular, has the best effect.

On the one hand, olive oil is rich in high-quality omega fatty acids, which can enhance insulin sensitivity; on the other hand, the oleic acid in olive oil can help slow down the digestion of food in the stomach.

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Add some ingredients to the rice

① Cereals

"Combining coarse and fine grains" is a rule of eating that we often hear. Compared with refined white rice and flour, coarse grains retain more nutrients, especially B vitamins. For example, if you steam rice in the ratio of 1 part rice + 1 part coarse grains, your vitamin B1 intake can be increased by 2 to 3 times.

At the same time, the bran and endosperm retained in the whole grains can help delay digestion and absorption.

* Millet contains tryptophan which can help you sleep. People who have trouble sleeping can add it.

*Black rice is rich in anthocyanins, so you can add it if you want to beautify your skin;

*Oats are rich in β-glucan, which can promote the body's metabolism of bad cholesterol and are very suitable for people with three highs and cardiovascular diseases.

2. Beans

The protein in beans is 2-3 times higher than that in rice. Protein is digested much slower in the gastrointestinal tract than carbohydrates, so it can occupy the gastrointestinal space for a longer time, thus enhancing satiety.

In addition, it is rich in lysine, which is lacking in grains, and is very suitable to be combined with rice to achieve nutritional complementarity.

*If you want to nourish your stomach and reduce edema, you can add red beans;

*If you want to cool down and clear away heat, you can add mung beans;

*If you want to nourish the kidneys, increase strength and strengthen bones, you can add black beans.

③Mushrooms

Mushrooms are listed as the "best dietary structure for humans". In addition to being used in cooking, they can also be cooked with rice.

On the one hand, fungi are low in fat, high in protein, and have a complete ratio of amino acids, which can make up for the lack of lysine in rice;

On the other hand, mushrooms contain many nutrients that cannot be missed - such as fungal polysaccharides, which can regulate the human immune system through multiple pathways and enhance immunity; ergothioneine, a strong antioxidant, whose antioxidant effect can be thousands of times that of vitamin E, helping to maintain brain vitality.

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Don't eat with a spoon

A survey conducted by the Singapore Clinical Nutrition Research Center on 11 people who can use chopsticks and spoons flexibly found that eating with chopsticks can help lower the body's glycemic index.

Eating with chopsticks prolongs the meal time - it takes 683 seconds to eat 150g of rice with chopsticks, while it takes 418 seconds with a spoon. Spending a longer time on meals can also help lower the glycemic index.

Source: I am a great doctor official account

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