Meta-Analysis Alleges Link Between White Rice Consumption and Type 2 Diabetes

A recent meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies has claimed that “higher white rice consumption was associated with a significantly elevated risk of type 2 diabetes.” Emily Hu, et al., “White rice consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes: systemic review,” BMJ, March 2012. Harvard School of Public Health researchers apparently examined four articles with “seven distinct prospective cohort analyses in Asian and Western populations” that included a total of 13,284 incident cases of type 2 diabetes among 352,384 participants. The results purportedly suggested that the correlation “seems to be stronger for Asians than for Western populations,” with each serving per day of white rice
“associated with an 11% increase in risk of diabetes in the overall population.”

The authors also speculated on potential mechanisms to explain the association, especially among Asian populations where “white rice is consumed as a staple food” and “is the predominant contributor to dietary glycaemic load.” As they concluded, “The recent transition in nutrition characterized by dramatically decreased physical activity levels and much improved security and variety of food has led to increased prevalence of obesity and insulin resistance in Asian countries. Although rice has been a staple food in Asian populations for thousands of years, this transition may render Asian populations more susceptible to the adverse effects of high intakes of white rice, as well as other sources of refined carbohydrates such as pastries, white bread, and sugar sweetened beverages.”