A CHECK with local supermarket chains showed that more people in Singapore are buying the healthier brown rice these days.
Brown, or unpolished, rice retains the outer layer, called bran, which contains nutrients and gives the rice its colour.
Ms Pooja Vig of The Nutrition Clinic noted that among Asians, Indians are genetically more predisposed to diabetes.
A study by the Singapore Eye Research Institute found that one in three Indians in Singapore are diabetic.
'White rice adds to the diabetes risk because it has a higher glycemic index, which means it causes blood sugar levels to rise faster than brown rice,' she said.
'Brown rice, with its lower glycemic index, is a healthier option as it is broken down into glucose a lot more slowly.'
