Do This One Thing To Your Fave Starchy Foods To Lower Their Calories

…and help keep your blood sugar in check.

 
 

by The Candidly Team



Buckle up. Things are about to get weird … But good weird. Fun weird.

Did you know that refrigerating cooked starchy foods like pasta for a period of time before eating them can actually change their structure so they have fewer calories and a smaller impact on blood glucose?

Care to read that again? 

Or maybe just pause to marvel at how on earth we’re just finding this out now?!

Putting your cooked pasta or potatoes in the fridge for at least 24 hours or freezing your bread before toasting it can spark a process called starch retrogradation in which a portion of the starch present becomes “resistant starch.” Resistant starch passes through your system mostly undigested, so you don’t see the same spike in blood sugar or calorie conversion. Instead, resistant starch acts more like fiber, moving through your small intestine without much absorption and eventually feeding healthy gut bacteria in the large intestine.

Bottom line? Fewer calories (resistant starch has almost half the calories of regular starch), decrease in blood sugar spikes, and benefits to gut health. Wheee!

Does this mean we can go to town on reheated penne and potato salad and not gain weight? Naturally, there’s more to it than that. So let’s break this resistant starch thing down a little further, shall we? 

 
@milknhoneynutrition Replying to @Steve yes, resistant starch is a real thing! Many people see more stable blood sugars after eating high carbohydrate foods like rice, pasta, and potatoes, when they have cooled the food down completely in the refrigerator or frozen, before eating it #milknhoneynutrition #diabetes #bloodsugar #type1 #t1d #type1diabetes #type2 #t2d #type2diabetes #prediabetes #bloodsugarfriendly #resistantstarch ♬ original sound - Mary Ellen, Diabetes Dietitian
 

What’s good about resistant starch:

There are several possible health rewards of resistant starch that include:

  1. Aiding weight loss by increasing feelings of fullness and leading to lower calorie consumption

  2. Providing a good source of prebiotic fiber and feeding healthy gut bacteria

  3. Improving glycemic control

  4. Helping cholesterol levels

  5. Lowering risk of colon cancer

  6. Treating and preventing constipation

  7. Lowering inflammation

What foods are a good source of resistant starch? 

We don’t have to chill all foods to create resistant starch. According to UCLA Health, foods that are already high in it include:

  • Nuts

  • Seeds

  • Beans

  • Legumes

  • Whole grains

  • Unripe bananas and plantains

But UCLA also points out what we’re here to talk about which is that resistant starch can form from “cooking and then cooling certain high-carb foods,” including:

  • Rice

  • Potatoes

  • Yams

  • Whole grains such as oats and barley

  • Pasta

“Someone looking to increase their consumption of resistant starch should consider allowing those foods to cool completely before consuming them,” wrote UCLA Health. More specifically, studies have shown the chilling process can impact the following foods:

  • Bread: Freezing before toasting bread can lower the glucose response.

  • Pasta: Cooking then cooling pasta before reheating can lower glycemic response.

  • Rice: Cooked rice cooled for 14 hours then reheated can have a lower glycemic response.

  • Potatoes: Tots that were cooked and cooled had a lower glycemic response, though some studies showed this wasn’t the case when potatoes were reheated. So maybe that potato salad is a good idea after all!

 
 

So is there a catch?

More info is certainly needed to speak to how significant an effect this whole cooking and cooling process can have, including whether or not it could impact weight loss. According to some dieticians, the glucose response won’t necessarily be the same or significant for everyone. Like fiber, adding resistant starch to your diet can be a tad hard on your stomach if you’re not used to it, so ease into it and drink lots of water. And not to be a mom, but always use proper measures to safely store and reheat your food. Never keep food for longer than recommended. (Here are some reheating safety tips for rice specifically, which can contain specific bacteria that present a risk.)

In general, eating processed foods can present some health concerns so it’s wise to try to prioritize whole grains and other foods that are naturally high in resistant starches and not just fill up on white pastas, rice, and potatoes. But if we are going to enjoy these high-starch foods, cooking them a day in advance to lower calories and blood glucose and to convert some of that starch into something good for us could be a real win for our health.

 
 
 

This article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be used in place of professional advice, medical treatment, or professional care in any way. This article is not intended to be and should not be a substitute for professional care, advice or treatment. Please consult with your physician or healthcare provider before changing any health regimen. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent disease of any kind. Read our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

 
 
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