- Eating carbohydrates that have been cooked, cooled, and then reheated may help people lose weight.
- Reheated potatoes, rice and pasta have more resistant starch, explained registered dietitian nutritionist Rhiannon Lambert.
- Resistant starch helps prevent blood sugar spikes and is more satiating, research suggests.
Eating carbohydrates as leftovers instead of hot and freshly cooked may help with
weightloss
Registered nutritionist Rhiannon Lambert told Insider.
When we eat carbohydrates, they are broken down in the intestine and absorbed as sugar, which raises blood glucose levels.
However, when cooked carbohydrates like pasta, potatoes, and rice are cooled, a type of fiber called
resistant starch
increases in food, Lambert said.
“Resistant starch is starch that resists digestion. It’s not digested in the small intestine and then fermented,” he said.
Having a lot of resistant starch in the diet is good because it doesn’t quickly turn into sugar, he said.
Resistant starch remains increased even if leftovers are reheated before eating, which means the fiber content of the carbs is higher, which in turn causes fewer blood sugar spikes.
Dr. Chris van Tulleken, a researcher who has studied resistant starch, previously told the BBC that food temperature could help make meals more fiber-friendly.
“We can turn a carbohydrate-laden meal into a healthier fiber-laden one without changing a single ingredient, just the temperature. In other words, our leftovers could be healthier for us than the original meal,” he said.
Eating Leftovers, Even When Reheated, May Help You Lose Weight
Stable blood sugar levels help control weight and decrease cravings caused by low energy, registered dietitian Alexandra Rowles wrote for health line.
And there is evidence to suggest that reheated carbs can prevent blood sugar spikes.
TO small study from 2014, written by Dr. Denise Robertson of the University of Surrey and Van Tulleken, found that eating cooked, chilled and reheated pasta caused the smallest rise in blood sugar, compared to freshly cooked or cooked pasta then eaten cold .
Another small study from 2015 by the University of Indonesia on white rice came to the same conclusion.
Be careful when reheating rice, though: In his book “The Science of Nutrition,” Lambert recommends chilling and refrigerating within an hour of cooking, reheating completely, and eating within a day to prevent bacterial spores from forming.
Eating more resistant starch may also increase feelings of fullness and satiety, according to a 2015 study.
To increase the resistant starch in bread, Lambert recommends freezing the slices and toasting them straight from frozen.
“If people are on a body fat loss mission and looking to even out their blood sugar levels, or if they’re looking at their productivity and avoiding afternoon slumps, it might be beneficial to try and consume more resistant starch,” he said. . saying.
