Know More about Rice Dumplings

Apart from watching dragon boat races, many people love to eat traditional glutinous rice dumplings with their families and friends during the Dragon Boat Festival. Not surprisingly, you would see many commercially available rice dumplings that drives people to purchase are diversified and appealing. Yet, eating in excess is not recommended because different types of rice dumplings may contain calories, fat and sugar content in different amount, which may lead to several health problems such as obesity and chronic diseases easily. To be a smart customer, you should better explore and understand the nutrient contents of foods that you consume, so as to benefit your health in the best way. The following is the comparison of different rice dumplings, see below:

Nutrient recommendations from Centre of Food Safety[1]:

1. Daily fat intake: Contributes 20% to 35% of daily energy intake for adults, i.e. A daily intake of 1500 calories should limit fat intake to approximately 33-58 g per day (1g of fat equals to 9 calories).
2. Daily intake of sugar: Contributes not more than 10% of daily energy intake derived from free sugars. i.e. A daily intake of 1500 calories should limit free sugar intake to less than 37.5g per day (1g of sugar equals to 4 calories).
3. Daily sodium intake: Not more than 2,000 mg (i.e. 1 teaspoon of salt) per day.

[1] Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: Fats and fatty acids in human nutrition: Report of an expert consultation。 Rome: FAO,2010year.

Guo Zheng Zong (Sticky rice dumpling with ham, scallop, pork, salted duck egg, mushroom, chestnut and mung bean)

Guo Zheng Zong is noticeably bigger in size (600g) and it is generally made of glutinous rice, fatty pork, salted duck egg, scallops, shiitake mushrooms, roast duck meat, lotus seeds, chestnuts and mung bean. In fact, half of the Guo Zheng Zong (300 grams) already contains 650 calories, which is equivalent to 3 bowls of rice, representing the highest calories’ dumpling among others. The reason that Guo Zheng Zong has high calories is owe much to its ingredients including the fatty pork, salted egg and roasted duck meat that carry high saturated fat and cholesterol. Therefore, people with high blood cholesterol level should pay more attention before the consumption. For fat content, it is about 33g of total fats present in half of the Guo Zheng Zong and is as much as 6 teaspoons of oil. Even though you eat half of it, it already reaches the fat requirement of an adult in a day. Thus, there is a higher chance of fat accumulation in the body if you eat high fat foods in excess. Even worse, clots may develop along the lining of blood vessels, which seriously increases the risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke and obesity in long run.  It is recommended to eat up to 1/6 of Guo Zheng Zong and limit daily calories intake along the day.  

Xian Rou Zong (Sticky rice dumpling with pork, salted duck egg and mung bean)

Xian Rou Zong is filled with simple ingredients than Guo Zheng Zong, but it is still high in fat and cholesterol due to the presence of salted duck egg and fatty pork, in additional to glutinous rice and mung beans. In terms of fat content, Xian Rou Zong comes the second among all and it contains approximately 540 calories and 20g fat, which is almost equal to 2.5 bowls of rice and 4 teaspoons of oil. Still, the calorie of Xian Rou Zong is about 100kcal lower than Guo Zheng Zong. Apart from that, Xian Rou Zong is high in sodium content due to the present of Jinhua ham, salted duck egg and cured meat. For those who concern about blood cholesterol and blood pressure should avoid eating because sodium can intensify water retention in the body and raise blood pressure unconsciously. This condition may eventually lead to higher risks of hypertension, heart disease and even stroke. It is recommended to eat up to half of the Xian Rou Zong per day and do not serve with extra sugar and salt. For those who concern about blood cholesterol, blood sugar level and blood pressure should be careful on your decision.

Alkaline rice dumpling

The traditional alkaline rice dumpling is usually made of two ingredients, including glutinous rice and alkaline water. It has a lower fat content (4g fat) than sticky rice dumplings but its calorie content (i.e. 480 calories) is as much as Xian Rou Zong (i.e. 2 bowls of rice) due to the higher content of glutinous rice in alkaline rice dumpling. Comparing to white rice, glutinous rice has higher stickiness and it is difficult to be digested. People who suffer from poor digestion may easily get bloated, abdominal pain, gastrointestinal discomfort and other gut problems if eat in excess. In terms of glycemic index (GI), the GI of glutinous rice is higher than that of white rice, which means that glutinous rice can cause a person’s blood sugar level to rise faster than that of white rice. Hence, for those who concern about the blood sugar level should not overeat. In addition, most of the alkaline rice dumplings are filled with red bean and other sweet paste fillings, that greatly add calories and sugar content to the alkaline rice dumpling. It is recommended to eat not more than half of the alkaline rice dumplings per day and pick the one without fillings. It is also suggested not to serve with white sugar or soy sauce, as this will greatly increase the intake of sugar and sodium.

Mini crystal rice dumplings

The mini crystal rice dumpling is an innovative creation that no longer uses glutinous rice as the main ingredient. It is made of tapioca pearls and designed as a one-bite food in palm-size, crystal-like and different color. One mini size (60g) contains only 125 calories and is perfectly served as a dessert or tea snack. When compared to other rice dumplings in the same amount (300g), mini crystal rice dumpling has higher calories than Xian Rou Zong and alkaline rice dumplings, owing to its high sugar content. It is approximately 100 times higher in sugar than that of Xian Rou Zong because a mini crystal rice dumpling is usually filled with jam, red bean paste, sweet potato paste, sesame paste and other sugary fillings. According to the Centre for Food Safety, more than 15g of sugar content per 100g is considered as "high sugar", while the sugar content (20g sugar) of one mini crystal rice dumpling (60g) has already considered high sugar. Too much sugar in the body may not only lead to obesity, but also insulin resistance. It will greatly add pressure to your body and further increase the risk of diabetes. It is recommended to eat at most one mini crystal rice dumpling per day and try your best to compare different products along with the food labels, while choose the one with the lowest sugar content. It is suggested that people who concern about blood sugar level should eat less.  

Health Tips :

1. Try to home-make your own rice dumpling. For example, replacing glutinous rice with brown rice or multi-grain that are rich in dietary fibers to lower the GI index of the rice dumpling. Stuffing with cha siu or lean meats instead of cured meats or fatty pork can greatly reduce the fat content. You can also add some low-calorie but healthy ingredients such as mushroom, soy products and dried shrimps to raise the nutrition value of the rice dumpling.
2. Share the rice dumpling with others and avoid eating the whole piece as a main meal. At the same time, avoiding foods and drinks that are high in sugar, sodium and fat, so that you can effectively control your overall calories intake of a day.
3. If you concern about blood cholesterol, blood sugar level and blood pressure, avoid rice dumplings that contain fatty meat, Jinhua ham, salted egg, cured meat and processed meats. Avoid dipping with sugar, soy sauce and other sauce to reduce sodium and sugar intake in general.
4. Eat more fruits and vegetables because they contain dietary fibers, vitamins and minerals that can aid digestion and slow down the absorption of fat and sugar along the intestine.  
5. Do extra aerobic exercise to burn out fat and calories, for example, jogging, cycling and swimming. You can also stroll around after dinner to aid digestion and maximize your fat burn rate.
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