Can You Eat Rice if You Have Diabetes?

rediffGURU Niharikka Budhwani offers advice on how to correct lifestyle disorders with the right diet and nutrition.

• You can post your diet and nutrition-related questions to rediffGURU Niharikka Budhwani HERE.

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Can diabetics eat rice and rotis?

Will eating bitter gourd and cluster beans (gavar) help lower blood sugar levels?

What is the difference between regular and decaf coffee?

rediffGURU Niharikka Budhwani is a registered dietician and the co-founder of Health Hatch, a wellness company.

She specialises in lifestyle management and has been guiding individuals of all ages about lifestyle-related health disorders including diabetes and obesity.

• You can post your diet and nutrition-related questions to rediffGURU Niharikka Budhwani HERE.
  
  

Anonymous: Can high-diabetic patients eat rice?

If you have uncontrolled blood sugar levels, you need to work on managing the overall glycaemic load of the meal.

You can eat rice but here are a few tips to incorporate:

1. Cook rice a day before. Refrigerate it for 8 to 12 hours and microwave it the next day. Overnight refrigeration of rice forms resistant starch which doesn't allow blood sugar levels to spike.

2. Add a teaspoon of ghee/coconut oil to this rice. This will further slow down the absorption of glucose and help you manage post-prandial blood sugar levels.

3. Eat in a balanced way to lower the overall glycaemic load of the meal. This means that along with one serving of rice, include one serving of protein (dal/non-veg), vegetable and salad. This will also help you manage postprandial blood sugar levels.

In addition, please try to find the root cause (diet and lifestyle habits) of your uncontrolled blood sugar levels and work on improving them.

Anonymous: Hello. I have heard a lot about decaf coffee. So I have two questions:
1. What potential health benefits are associated with drinking decaf coffee, particularly regarding diabetes, heart health and mental well-being?
2. How does individual tolerance to caffeine influence the choice between regular and decaf coffee for maintaining overall health?

Hello, decaf coffee contains significantly lower caffeine compared to regular coffee. However decaf coffee retains antioxidants and certain bioactive compounds that are beneficial for health.

For diabetes, both decaf and regular coffee have been shown to improve glucose metabolism.

However, when it comes to heart health, decaf can be a better choice as caffeine is known to spike your blood pressure.

If you are sensitive to caffeine, which means you experience jitters and anxiety after consumption, then decaf is a gentle alternative.

The choice depends on the following:

Caffeine sensitivity: If you experience anxiety, palpitations, restlessness, sleep disturbances, etc, after consuming regular coffee, then decaf would be a better alternative.

Specific conditions: If you have high blood pressure, irregular heartbeats (arrhythmia), insomnia, acidity, etc, decaf would be a better choice.

To conclude, both decaf and regular coffee offer different health benefits. Choose wisely based on the points suggested above.

Decaf coffee allows individuals to enjoy coffee’s antioxidant and disease-fighting properties with less risk of caffeine-related side effects.

Anonymous: Are bitter gourd and cluster beans good for diabetics?
Can eating it regularly help lower blood sugar?
Asking for my mother who is diabetic, and 61 years old.

Both bitter gourd and cluster beans are well-researched for their blood glucose-lowering properties, making them excellent additions to a diabetes-friendly diet.

However, how you prepare them significantly impacts their nutritional value.

For instance, frying these vegetables or adding excessive salt, jaggery or oil can strip away their health benefits and may even increase bad cholesterol or blood pressure, doing more harm than good.

To maximise the benefits, include bitter gourd and cluster beans 2-3 times a week in their simplest form -- lightly cooked as a regular vegetable dish.

Also, always remember one food/ingredient will not positively impact her overall blood glucose levels. It's her overall diet (which should be low in glycaemic load) combined with stress, sleep routine and exercise that will affect her glucose reading. Please make sure everything is well managed.

• You can post your diet and nutrition-related questions to rediffGURU Niharikka Budhwani HERE.

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