When it comes to “carbohydrates,” many people tend to avoid them, worrying that eating too much will cause weight gain, increase blood sugar, and even see it as a “stumbling block” on their path to health. In fact, there is a type of “carbohydrate” that not only does not lead to obesity but also has the effect of reducing fatty liver, and that is—resistant starch!
This type of carbohydrate
Can reduce fatty liver and help with weight loss
In 2023, researchers led by Jia Weiping from the Sixth People’s Hospital affiliated with the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine published a study in the journal “Cell Metabolism.” The study showed that a diet rich in resistant starch can change the composition of intestinal bacteria, reduce triglycerides and liver enzyme levels associated with liver damage and inflammation, and alleviate fatty liver.
After a 4-month experiment, the researchers found that compared to the control group, resistant starch significantly reduced the participants’ liver triglyceride content by 9.08% in absolute terms and by 39.42% in relative terms. It also significantly reduced the participants’ weight, BMI, fat content, etc.
Furthermore, participants in the resistant starch group also showed improvement in liver damage. Not only that, but the total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein of the resistant starch group participants also improved, mitigating lipid abnormalities.
This “miraculous carbohydrate”
Where can it be found in foods?
Resistant starch, in simple terms, is a type of starch that is difficult to digest. Resistant starch is found in many natural foods, and the following are a few foods rich in resistant starch that have a slow glycemic response and strong satiety, making them a quality staple food.
1. Whole grains
Recommended foods: oats, sweet corn, barley, wheat, sorghum, etc.
Unprocessed whole grains and seeds available on the market generally contain resistant starch. It is recommended to include 1/4 or 1/2 whole grains in the daily meals, with at least one meal including whole grains.
Tips: Consuming whole grains alone can be difficult to digest, mixing them with rice is more easily accepted. Making rice or porridge with a ratio of 1:0.5 of rice to whole grains enhances both taste and blood sugar control.
Health Times material image
2. Legumes
Recommended foods: chickpeas, peas, soybeans, black beans, lentils, red beans, mung beans, lima beans, etc.
Drink soy milk in the morning and have chickpeas or peas as snacks between meals. When consuming staple foods, consider adding mixed beans. For instance, red beans or mung beans can be added to rice to create red bean rice or mung bean rice.
Tips: Consuming legumes alone may cause bloating. Making rice or porridge with a ratio of 1:0.3 of rice to legumes and pre-soaking the legumes overnight enhances digestion while preserving taste.
3. Tubers
Recommended foods: sweet potatoes, potatoes, etc.
In one or two meals a day, consider adding some tubers moderately while reducing the intake of other staples.
Tips: Cooked or baked tubers can be consumed as staple foods directly or boiled together with rice. Sweet potato flour or potato flour products like sweet potato buns or potato buns available on the market are also good choices.
Health Times material image
Resistant starch
How should it be eaten for better health?
1. Suggest cooling the staple food before consumption
When rice, steamed buns, potatoes, etc., are cooked and then refrigerated, the content of resistant starch significantly increases, and the glycemic index also decreases noticeably. Upon reheating, some resistant starch is retained; for instance, reheating refrigerated rice results in a lower blood sugar response compared to freshly cooked rice. For example, overnight fried rice is a choice that combines resistant starch with taste.
In high-temperature conditions, starch undergoes gelatinization, leading to a reduction in resistant starch content, making food easier to digest and absorb, while the blood sugar response increases.
2. Choose cooking methods with less water
Cooking methods with less water, such as baking or microwave heating, can reduce starch gelatinization; for example, baked potatoes have a higher resistant starch content than boiled potatoes. This is why it is recommended to reheat refrigerated rice, steamed buns, or bread using baking or microwave methods.
3. Cook whole grain rice to a chewy texture
In addition, high-pressure cooking can reduce resistant starch content. Whole grains cooked into a very sticky porridge using a pressure cooker contain less resistant starch than whole grain rice cooked slightly chewy.
4. Avoid consuming overly greasy foods
Furthermore, avoid consuming overly greasy foods, as a high-fat diet can negate the health benefits of resistant starch.
5. Avoid blindly purchasing resistant starch
Just because resistant starch has health benefits, it doesn’t mean you should blindly purchase and increase your intake of resistant starch. Consuming too much resistant starch can lead to gastrointestinal side effects such as nausea, vomiting, bloating, increased intestinal motility, or changes in bowel movements.
Simply by making appropriate food choices in your daily balanced diet and increasing your intake of resistant starch, you can make your diet a bit healthier.
Health Times material image
Consume more “good carbohydrates”
Consume less “bad carbohydrates”
In addition to staples such as rice, noodles, and steamed buns, vegetables, fruits, etc., fall under carbohydrate foods. Xia Yanqiong, chief physician of the Nutrition Department at the Guangdong Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital, wrote in a 2023 article on the Healthy China public account that consuming carbohydrates is essential. However, carbohydrates are also divided into “good carbohydrates” and “bad carbohydrates.” How should you approach consuming them?
1. Consume more “good carbohydrates”
This category of carbohydrates naturally includes “resistant starch.” Additionally, increase your intake of green carbohydrates. Vegetables and fruits are rich in fiber and also contain some carbohydrates — they can also be considered “good carbohydrates.”
These foods are typically green, indicating green carbohydrates. The more colors on your plate, the healthier your diet.
2. Consume less “bad carbohydrates”
If consumed in excess, this category of carbohydrates can burden the cardiovascular system, increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, and be unfavorable for blood pressure and weight control. These carbohydrates are predominantly white or rice-colored foods, such as rice, sweets, etc.
Reduce your intake of “bad carbohydrates,” especially refined rice and sugary additives. Added sugar refers to sugars artificially added to foods, providing sweetness, including monosaccharides and disaccharides such as sucrose, fructose, glucose, corn syrup, etc. It is advisable to limit daily sugar intake to less than 5% (about 25 grams).
Article source: Study Hard Public Account
Article from: Health Times WeChat Public Account
Please share this article with everyone
