Brown Rice - The Secret to Lowering Cholesterol and Weight Naturally

One of the secrets about nutrition is to eat food as close to its natural form as possible. This means that we should avoid canned, processed, refined or frozen food as much as possible. The Japanese are known for their diet comprising plenty of raw (natural) food and they drink plenty of green tea (which is the least-processed tea of all). Not surprising, the Japanese are generally in better health shape compared to people in the other developed nations.

In the same logic, we should be eating brown rice instead of white rice (which is refined rice). Nature has it that every brown grain would contain vitamin B complex, manganese, phosphorus, selenium, iron, fiber and essential fatty acid. These nutrients aid our body in the production of energy, blood cells, connective tissues, hormones, aid in calcium absorption, blood-sugar regulation, fat metabolism and maintain healthy nervous system. These nutrients are found typically on the surface of the brown grain.

Unfortunately, brown rice has a shorter shelf life, prompting manufacturers to process it into white rice. The process involves polishing (or stripping away) the surface of the brown grains. As a result of the polishing, white rice would have lost as much as 90% of the surface nutrients. To improve the nutritional value of white rice, manufacturers are required by the FDA to enrich it with vitamins and minerals. Unfortunately, not all of Mother Nature's nutrients can be synthetically restored. Thus, white refined rice is nutritionally inferior compared to brown rice.

There is a lot of goodness in brown rice. Brown rice contains natural anti-oxidants. Brown rice is less constipating than white rice, making it suitable for those with weak stomach. Brown rice also helps the female to maintain her body weight. According to the Harvard Medical School which studied 74,000 female aged 38-63 years over a 12 year period, those who consumed refined grains (white rice and flour) tend to put on weight compared to those who consumed whole grains (such as brown rice). This is probably due to the higher fiber content in whole grains. Finally, a diet high in fiber is known to lower cholesterol, so those who are concerned about their cholesterol should benefit from consuming brown rice and whole grain products.

Lyn P. writes on various topics of health and nutrition. The above article was published in the Cholesterol Diet Secrets mini course (http://www.Cholesterol-Diet-Secrets.com/home), a website that provides tips for reversing the effects of cholesterol without prescription drugs.

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