Does starch make people fat?

Starch contains a lot of carbohydrates, and starch is also a necessary nutrient in our daily life. Most people have always had misunderstandings about starch, thinking that if they often eat foods with high starch content, they will cause weight gain. Foods with high starch content include potatoes, bananas, rice, etc. In fact, starch is difficult to degrade and is generally digested slowly in the human body, so it actually has a weight-loss effect.

Starchy foods mainly refer to foods rich in carbohydrates. Our common cereals include rice, oatmeal, etc.; noodles, dumplings, bread, etc.; potatoes include potatoes, yam, sweet potato, etc.; beans include red beans, mung beans, peas, etc. Carbohydrates are the main functional nutrients for the human body. People tend to control calories by reducing carbohydrate intake. Most starchy foods are rich in carbohydrates, so people will consciously reduce starchy foods when they are dieting to lose weight. But in fact, starchy foods are important for maintaining people's life activities and health. In addition, eating starchy foods does not necessarily make you fat.

Starchy foods are of great significance to human health

Starchy foods can provide the human body with rich carbohydrates. If people do not eat or eat too little starchy foods, carbohydrate needs are not met. Then the body will have to use protein for energy, which will affect the body's use of protein to synthesize new proteins and tissue renewal, thereby affecting metabolism. In addition, insufficient carbohydrates and low sugar levels in the body can cause hypoglycemia. Therefore, people need to eat an appropriate amount of starchy foods to maintain good health.

Starchy foods don’t necessarily make you fat

Some starchy foods, such as rice, potatoes, bananas, etc., contain mostly resistant starch. Resistant starch can resist enzymatic breakdown, release glucose slowly in the body, has a lower insulin response, can control blood sugar balance, reduce hunger, and is particularly suitable for diabetic patients. In addition, resistant starch has the function of soluble dietary fiber, which can increase bowel movement and relieve constipation after consumption. Another important point is that resistant starch stays in the stomach for a long time, which can make people feel full, reduce food intake, and help control calorie intake. In other words, foods containing resistant starch not only do not make you fat but can also help you lose weight.

Besides, it's the excess calories, not the starch, that make you fat. Rice is a starchy food, and the starch content in red juice is less than that in rice. A bowl of rice has 230 calories, and a glass of red fruit juice has 390 calories. Eating a bowl of rice makes you feel fuller than drinking a glass of red fruit juice, but the calories in red fruit juice are much higher than rice. Therefore, it is really unjustifiable to simply blame starch for making people fat.

How to eat starchy foods to lose weight?

1. It is best to eat in the morning

After a night, the sugar in the human body is basically consumed, and carbohydrates are needed to provide energy. Eating some starchy foods at breakfast can satisfy the body's need for carbohydrates and "recharge" the body. Starchy foods have a strong sense of fullness. Eating some good rough starchy foods for breakfast can shorten hunger and reduce the amount of food eaten at lunch.

2. Control your food intake

Starchy foods are indispensable, but you can't eat too much. After all, starchy foods are converted into sugar after digestion. Eating too much starchy food can easily increase blood sugar, which is not conducive to weight loss. People with high blood sugar should eat less.

3. Use less salt and oil when cooking

When potatoes are made into French fries, the calories in one potato increase several times. The cooking method affects whether starch has a weight-loss effect. It is recommended to use less salt and oil when cooking starchy foods.

4. Don’t use starchy foods as a dish

Starchy foods are suitable as staple foods, but many people will put some starchy foods such as potatoes, yams, dumplings, etc. as dishes on the table. If you eat potatoes as a vegetable and rice as a staple food, the amount of starch you consume in this meal will increase, which will make you fat. Therefore, do not treat starch as a dish. If you really like to eat it this way, you should appropriately reduce the amount of rice and other foods you eat.