A campaign to bust the myths of rice

Nutritionists from across the country have come together to bust the myths about eating rice. The campaign was launched by Best Foods Ltd at the Plaza Hotel on Friday. Dr Aayushman Gupta, CEO of Best Foods Ltd. and Ruchita Jain from TNS Global Research consultancy, hosted an interactive session with reputed nutritionist Dr Janaki B to dispel the myths on rice.

A similar initiative was successfully hosted in Kolkata recently with renowned nutritionist Hena Nafis. The campaign, which is also being planned across key metros in India, is supported by the research findings of TNS Global Research Consultancy which is India’s top research agency.

The data has been collated from consumers in key metros on a host of parameters – perception, preference, purchase and price to understand the beliefs and attitude towards rice. These are the myths that people hold about rice which is debunked by nutritionists.

Rice is fattening

Rice is not particularly a fattening agent. Rice, along with many other cereals, are not fattening if taken in right portions. 30 grams of rice carries half the carbohydrates when compared to wheat. A nutritionist also pointed out that labourers consume large portions of rice everyday but still remain fit.

Rice leads to over-eating

Rice can’t be blamed for over eating. Rice, when mixed with a curry or made in a special way, can sometimes lead to over eating. Everyone would eat an extra morsel if they saw some nicely made curry to add to the rice. Biryani is one of our biggest examples that show how adding those extra masalas with rice lead us to eat much more than what we usually do.

Rice is difficult to digest

Rice is something that very easily digests as it is cooked in a proportion of 1:3 with water. This is one of the reasons that rice tends to digest faster and people tend to feel hungry in short spans of time.

Rice is bad for the heart

Studies from Japan and Philadelphia have proven that hardening of arteries is comparatively lower among rice eaters.

All kinds of rice are the same

Different types of rice hold different qualities in protein and fiber content. It is not all the same. Unpolished rice is much healthier.