If you have ever wondered why the Asians have thrived on rice for thousands of years and never had problems with it, in fact, thrived on it - this video is for you.
It will also inform you why Asians are now still eating rice and are suffering all the woes of obesity T2 diabetes etc.
Fantastic video!
This is brilliant. I have not eaten white rice for several years but I realise it’s time to shift my 7 year old son away from refined white carbs, including rice. he generally can’t eat enough, but even so, he would be better in the long term for more complex carbs, more protein & fat.
That guy makes a whole load of great videos. He fits in a lot of technical stuff while pitching it at a level everyone can understand. I've travelled widely across Asia and I can attest from personal experience that he's hit the nail on the head here. All of the nails. As he points out, it's a multi-faceted issue, taking in food refinement, poor nutrition, junk food, lack of exercise ... all of those factors have to drop into place to cause metabolic failure. Humans are pretty resilient, on the whole, but they have a breaking-point.
One thing he overlooks, though, is that there's no such thing as an "Asian Diet", which is one reason why dieticians are still arguing over it. Food patterns vary dramatically across geography and across social class. In India and neighbouring countries, many people eat not just a lot of rice but also a lot of sweets. Rice is very much a staple; that is, your meal is rice plus something, and it's mostly rice. Indian men have that classic "rice belly". Indian women get pretty wobbly in their 40s. Very similar in the Philippines, where the main feature is a vast mountain of rice plus something to make it taste good (often something with sugar in it). The Philippines is also a dumping-ground for all the industrial food that the conglomerates are banned by law from selling anywhere else. The results are quite predictable.
In China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, the picture is very different, and people are mostly slim. A meal might have rice in it, but it's not the main event. Broadly speaking, you'll have a selection of vegetables, meat, tofu, egg, etc., and a small bowl of rice. Desserts are non-traditional. Obesity only took off in these countries after the introduction of the sugar habit (thanks, Coca-Cola!). Young people now drink a lot of sweet drinks and consume processed "treats", although their older compatriots are less interested.
Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia are somewhere between those two points (unsurprisingly, since they've been historically influenced by the surrounding cultures). Rice and other carbs are consumed regularly, but my observation is that they're not treated as a staple, to be consumed at every opportunity. Rather as in China, they're consumed to offset strong flavours or to carry sauces. But they're definitely consumed in larger quantities than in, say, China.
I have read "Factfulness", incidentally, and wasn't that impressed. The author struck me as a bit dim, and while he argues for "looking at the big picture" he singularly fails to do that; instead of missing the wood for the trees, he goes so high-level that all he can see is a green blob on a blue globe.
One of the things that changed obesity levels in China was the single child policy. Not mentioned here but was a major driver of increased plenty.
I had a fascinating conversation in east London (UK not RSA) with a restaurant owner of Pakistani heritage. It was Ramadan & there was a massive queue to the ‘Indian’ sweet shop next door. This guy said it wasn’t surprising that type 2 diabetes was increasing in his community as young people did not know how to break a fast anymore. Fasting all day then eating a huge box of the honey based desserts would have been unthinkable in his childhood. I sagely nodded then went on to eat a naan bread. Ahem.
I have long found sushi a complete waste of time - all that white rice & sugary rice wine marinade, no fat to slow down blood sugar spikes & I am ready to stab someone an hour later (if only I could hold the knife steady...)
I am about to order some bigger plastic freezer pots, to increase the balance of bolognaise : carb for my son’s suppers.
Only came across him this morning. Agree with your assessement, very, very good videos.
Thanks for posting this. Lots of food for thought!
LC dinners
Extreme lethargy/fatigue on low carb?