Starchy Foods Increase Diabetes Risk

But adding whole grains to the diet improves the odds
By Colleen Barry,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 27, 2007 3:05 AM CST
Starchy Foods Increase Diabetes Risk
People who eat a lot of starchy foods like white bread may be more likely to develop diabetes.   (Getty Images)

African-American and Chinese women whose diets are high in starchy foods like white rice are at bigger risk for developing Type 2 diabetes, researchers have discovered. The good news is that eating whole-grain foods can help reduce the risk, according to two studies in the Archives of Internal Medicine. As an added bonus, those foods contain magnesium, which can help reduce blood pressure.

The findings support the theory that some carbohydrates such as refined grains cause a spike in blood sugar that can impair a body's ability to effectively utilize insulin and process sugar. "Given that a large part of the world's population consumes rice and carbohydrates as the mainstay of their diets [the findings] may have substantial implications for public health," researchers wrote. (More diabetes stories.)

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