Are rice cakes bad for you?

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kitchentales
kitchentales Posts: 73
in Food and Nutrition
I had a co-worker today tell me that rice cakes are actually really bad for you. Myself and the girls at the office eat plain rice cakes lightly toasted with peanut butter. Two of the girls at work are gluten-free, and I just jumped on the bandwagon because it's tasty and far fewer calories than bread. But now today I am hearing that rice cakes have a high glycemic index, and he started going on about how this makes you keep weight on, blood sugar shoots up, etc.

Thoughts anyone?

Replies

  • n0ob
    n0ob Posts: 2,390 Member
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    they're calories, mostly carbohydrates.
  • fstender
    fstender Posts: 165 Member
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    Your friend is very right! Yea...even though they're lower in calorie they are a starch food...your body turns this into pure sugar! It actually would be more benificial for you to eat a piece of whole grain bread with PB!
  • cmcollins001
    cmcollins001 Posts: 3,472 Member
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    Styrofoam ruins the environment.
  • cmcollins001
    cmcollins001 Posts: 3,472 Member
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    Your friend is very right! Yea...even though they're lower in calorie they are a starch food...your body turns this into pure sugar! It actually would be more benificial for you to eat a piece of whole grain bread with PB!

    Pure sugar? Awesome! I hear pure sugar is better than that artificial stuff anyway!
  • ubermensch13
    ubermensch13 Posts: 824 Member
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    Your friend is very right! Yea...even though they're lower in calorie they are a starch food...your body turns this into pure sugar! It actually would be more benificial for you to eat a piece of whole grain bread with PB!

    Really now? So you are saying eating a rice cake at 40 cals is worse than eating a whole grain piece of bread at 100 cals? Oh, the Paleo people are gonna be piiiisssssed!

    The only problem with rice cakes is that they are tasteless.....keep eating them if you want.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    You probably don't need to concern yourself with the glycemic index for reasons contained in this thread:
    http://alanaragon.com/glycemic-index

    That being said: I don't think you should have anything to fear regarding rice cakes. However, they aren't very nutrient dense and if the majority of your diet consisted of rice cakes, you'd probably run into issues.

    In the context of a mixed diet where some common sense is being used regarding caloric balance and overall nutrient intake, enjoy your rice cakes.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    Do you have some medical condition that requires you to not eat them? If not, then as long as they balance well with everything else you eat throughout the day such that your total cals and macros are where they should be then you're probably fine.
  • mizzie1980
    mizzie1980 Posts: 379 Member
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    I don't buy for a second that they "turn into pure sugar". Yes, it's pretty much empty carbs, but you do need some carbs you know. Better that they come from fruits, etc, but it's not like you are going to gain every ounce back from the occasional rice cake.

    Eating sugar and/or carbs does not equal instantly fat forever. No matter what you hear in commercials or read on the internet.

    Eat your rice cake if you enjoy it and it fits into your calories for the day. So long as you aren't eating them by the bagful all day long, it's not going to hinder your diet.
  • wrotruck
    wrotruck Posts: 72 Member
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    This what some of the folks around here call "Bro-Science."

    The fact is if you eat fewer calories than you burn you will lose weight.

    Yes, rice cakes have a high glycemic index but the blood sugar spike will be relative to the amount of other foods that your body is digesting at the same time. Yes, carbs convert to sugar which is more easily converted into fat tissue but you will only gain weight if you are eating at a calorie surplus.

    Relax... Eat within your calorie plan... Be happy...
  • sarahisme18
    sarahisme18 Posts: 574 Member
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    You probably don't need to concern yourself with the glycemic index for reasons contained in this thread:
    http://alanaragon.com/glycemic-index

    That being said: I don't think you should have anything to fear regarding rice cakes. However, they aren't very nutrient dense and if the majority of your diet consisted of rice cakes, you'd probably run into issues.

    In the context of a mixed diet where some common sense is being used regarding caloric balance and overall nutrient intake, enjoy your rice cakes.

    ^ this.

    Also, this: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_131983.html

    "Researchers created a list of 50 random food items, then found studies from the last 35 years that claimed risks or benefits for the majority them. But most of the claims were based on weak evidence."
  • jillsjourney
    jillsjourney Posts: 167 Member
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    Very informative, thanks for sharing!


    ^ this.

    Also, this: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_131983.html

    "Researchers created a list of 50 random food items, then found studies from the last 35 years that claimed risks or benefits for the majority them. But most of the claims were based on weak evidence."
  • kitchentales
    kitchentales Posts: 73
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    Wow thanks for all the thoughts!

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