Talk:White rice

Comments

This page is nonsense, is strongly POV, and is in terrible overall shape. I'm reworking it. Notbill 21:25, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

Alright, fixed it up. Notbill 21:49, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

Was it really that POV? It seemed to me to contain information that was simply unorganized and unreferenced. Instead of gutting the page, I think it should be cleaned up and information slowly added back in as proper sources are found for citation. Turly-burly 00:08, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

Well, the POV was that white rice is void of nutritional value and borders on being detrimental to health. To call white rice "little more than an empty starch" or "having little more nutritional value ... than processed cane sugar" is ridiculous; it's a modest source of protein, too. Brown rice is no doubt marginally healthier, but not to the extent that the previous version would suggest. And regardless, the health benefits of keeping the bran and germ is best dealt with on the whole grains page, or the brown rice page.

Also, I've heard the height discrepancy between native Asians and emigrants blamed on a number of things, such as cow milk vs. soy milk, etc. I suppose that could be put back in, but it seems awfully speculative to me. Notbill 05:14, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

The health issues should be dealt with on this page, more so than the brown rice page. White rice is more highly processed than brown rice, and the processing removes the vitamins and other micronutrients. The scourge of beriberi is an excellent case in point. The health issues should be combined with the processing discussion, and the need for fortification. NealMcB 18:17, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

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anyone know where/when white rice came into being??? i've looked around a bit and don't see much here or elsewhere on the net. i would have guessed it came about rather recently...

i did come across this:

In this comprehensive account of the history and treatment of beriberi, Kenneth Carpenter traces the decades of medical and chemical research that solved the puzzle posed by this mysterious disease. Caused by the lack of a minute quantity of the chemical thiamin, or vitamin B1 in the diet, beriberi is characterized by weakness and loss of feeling in the feet and legs, then swelling from fluid retention, and finally heart failure.

Western doctors working in Asia after 1870 saw it as the major disease in native armed forces and prisons. It was at first attributed to miasms (poisonous vapors from damp soil) or to bacterial infections. In Java, chickens fed by chance on white rice lost the use of their legs. On brown rice, where the grain still contained its bran and germ, they remained healthy. Studies in Javanese prisons then showed beriberi also occurring where white (rather than brown) rice was the staple food. Birds were used to assay the potency of fractions extracted from rice bran and, after 20 years, highly active crystals were obtained. In another 10 years their structure was determined and "thiamin" was synthesized. Beriberi is a story of contested knowledge and erratic scientific pathways. It offers a fascinating chronicle of the development of scientific thought, a history that encompasses public health, science, diet, trade, expanding empires, war, and technology.

http://www.ucpress.edu/books/pages/8742.html

it's from a book review on Kenneth Carpenter's "Beriberi, White Rice, and Vitamin B;" has anyone read it? this is the earliest mention i found. maybe the book has some more clues.

I'm also very interested in this question. NealMcB 18:17, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

Is white rice a simple or complex carb.?? I keep reading contradicting things online. and (though its not related) is brown rice strictly a complex carb.? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.59.126.21 (talk) 20:14, 26 January 2008 (UTC)

Naturally white rice?

I've seen white rice at the whole foods market, which makes me wonder if there is a naturally white rice that exists. Here's a comparison from their site: White Basmati Rice, White Jasmine Rice, White Texmati Rice 1/4 cup (dry) contains: (numbers based on Basmati) calories protein fat carbohydrates fiber sodium 178 4 g 0.66 g 39 g 1 g 0 mg

Brown Rice: Basmati, Texmati, Long Grain, Medium Grain, Short Grain, Sweet Brown 1/4 cup (dry) contains: (numbers based on long grain brown) calories protein fat carbohydrates fiber sodium 171 3.6 g 1.3 g 35 g 1.6 g 0 mg

Family Guy Guy (talk) 22:23, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

Perhaps, but not in the examples given. Wholeness of a food is relative, of course. Ham Pastrami (talk) 20:12, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Nutrition value

I thought the side box was meant to be a nutrition value for White Rice, not for White Rice-after-passing-added-nutrient-requirements-by-American-law. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.213.170.179 (talk) 08:24, 27 March 2011 (UTC)

• I agree with your point, but I can't be bothered to edit the table - please go ahead if you want. Fugyoo (talk) 20:12, 15 September 2011 (UTC)