Have you ever heard about resistant starch? As the name implies, this starch is resistant to the digestive system. In other words, resistant starch cannot be digested or destroyed by the body. Starch is a complex carbohydrate consisting of long chains of glucose. You can easily find starch in several types of foods such as potatoes and whole grains.
However, it does not mean that starch is not good for your body. In fact, resistant starch has become increasingly popular as a healthy food alternative. There have been many studies showing that resistant starch has many health benefits, including increasing the body's sensitivity to insulin, lowering blood sugar levels, and reducing appetite. Also, resistant starch is very good for your digestive system since it can be a food source for“good” bacteria in your intestines and a source of energy for colon cells.
Reporting from Healthline, here are eight foods rich in resistant starch.
- Oats contains 3.6 grams of resistant starch for every 100 grams of oats. To increase its resistant starch content, you can refrigerate the cooked oats for several hours or overnight. Apart from being high in resistant starch, oats are also rich in antioxidants.
- Rice is known to contain high levels of resistant starch. Its resistant starch maybe even higher if you left the rice to cool down for several hours after cooking it
- Grains, such as sorghum and barley, contain lots of resistant starch. Not only are they a good source of fiber, whole grains also contain vitamins and minerals that are good for the body.
- In addition to being high in fibre, beans and legumes also have resistant starch. Make sure you have soaked and cooked them before eating.
- Potato starch contains 80% resistant starch. Make sure you don't process it in hot temperature.
- Potatoes are a good source of carbohydrates and resistant starch. Not only that, potatoes also contain other nutrients such as potassium and vitamin C. Just like rice, the content of resistant starch in potatoes will increase when the food is cold.
- Green bananas are another good source of resistant starch.
- Other starchy foods such as pasta, sweet potatoes and corn tortillas are also known to be rich in resistant starch. Make sure you consume them cold to get more resistant starch.
Text by Anggie Tiana
Stock photos from Pixabay
Source(s):
- Healthline - Resistant Starch 101 - Everything You Need to Know (2018). https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/resistant-starch-101, 24 September 2020.
- Healthline - 9 Foods That Are High in Resistant Starch (2020). https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/9-foods-high-in-resistant-starch, 24 September 2020.