Senator Cynthia Villar on Thursday said she merely aired her concerns on the health risks of eating too much rice and assured the publiv that she does not plan to file a bill to ban the serving of unlimited rice (unli rice) in restaurants and other food establishments.
“I just voiced out my concern that eating too much rice is one of the main causes of high blood sugar that leads to diabetes,” said Villar, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food.
Villar conceded that it would really be difficult to stop Filipinos from eating rice as the Philippines is a nation of rice eaters. But to decrease health risks, cutting down on rice is still a good idea.
“But, of course, I cannot prevent people from eating unlimited amount of rice. It is their choice. It was just a genuine expression of concern on my part,” Villar said.
The senator said that a study indicated that eating one plate of white rice everyday increases the risk of developing diabetes by 11 percent.
She said health experts also recommend adding 20 percent of brown rice to the daily white rice consumption because it can help reduce the risk of diabetes by around 16 percent.
Rice cause an increase in the level of sugar in the blood, which makes pancreas produce more insulin and cause frequent spikes in blood sugar level leading to diabetes.
“When not managed, diabetes may cause organ malfunction leading to death,” warned Villar. She said that other countries promote a balanced diet consisting of small portions of rice and a generous amount of vegetables.
“In schools in Japan, the students even discuss the nutritional value of their meals for the day before they eat. They also harvest the vegetables they eat from the garden in their school. Of course, we want our children and children’s children to grow up healthy,” added Villar.
She earlier urged the government departments such as the Department of Agriculture, Department of Social Welfare and Development, and the Department of Health to align their programs in order to promote better nutrition and health among young Filipinos.
“I have recommended to the government departments and they are doing it in some areas already to incorporate vegetable gardening in schools in the feeding program, for instance. They can also source the ingredients locally, particularly the perishable produce, to help the small farmers and cooperatives,”said Villar.
On Wednesday, Villar conducted a Senate hearing on the government’s rice importation policy, as well as the country’s rice production and consumption.
During the hearing, she proposed the consumption of more vegetables instead of rice. Aside from the supposed health benefits of cutting down on rice consumption, she said the move would also help the government achieve its rice self-sufficiency target.
Present during the hearing were representatives from the Department of Agriculture, National Food Authority (NFA), and Cabinet Secretary Leoncio “Jun” Evasco, chair of the NFA council.
Villar also encouraged the consumption of the healthier brown rice, instead of well-milled rice.