It's often heard at the dinner table: "Eat less rice, eat more dishes. Rice has no nutrition, the nutrition is all in the dishes." Some women who are overly concerned about their figures even treat this as a golden rule for weight loss. On the surface, this seems quite reasonable, but from a scientific and nutritional perspective, if this continues for a long time, it is extremely detrimental to health. Eating less rice and more dishes is unhealthy.
The main component of rice and staple foods like noodles is carbohydrates, which is a cost-effective and directly convertible source of energy and nutrition. Our Chinese nation has always relied on rice and staple foods as essential food items. The dietary habits and nutritional absorption patterns of a nation are not something that can be easily changed in one or two generations; they are formed through a process of evolution spanning tens of thousands of years.
In terms of the human body's composition, 99% of the human body and its organs are made up of water, and carbohydrates are precisely the main "basic raw material" our bodies need. From the perspective of digestion, in a balanced diet, 50% to 60% of the total daily energy requirement comes from carbohydrates. Compared to the rich dishes of fish and meat, rice is much easier to digest and has an essential nature that other nutrients cannot replace. Staple foods generally have a light flavor, and beyond that, there is the inherently light fragrance of rice. Why can we eat rice for a lifetime without getting tired of it, yet feel sick of rich dishes of fish and meat after just three consecutive days? This is because rich dishes are heavy in flavor, color, and oil. Eating too much of them can cause great反感 (discomfort) and irritation to the digestive system. Consuming excessive amounts of rich dishes places a great burden on the stomach and intestines.
Long-term consumption of dishes high in protein and fat but low in fiber is extremely detrimental to health. Some people think that eating more vegetables is not a bad thing, but vegetables "absorb" oil. Many vegetables are stir-fried with excessive cooking oil, and some dishes are as if soaked in oil. Eating this way can easily lead to high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, and obesity.
Nutritionists also do not advocate the absolute view of "eating less rice, more dishes." They advocate for a scientific and reasonable combination of staples and non-staples, including rice, vegetables, meat dishes, and fruit, of course, with staples accounting for the absolute majority of the diet. Furthermore, one must also consider the life stage of each individual. Teenagers are in a stage of physical and skeletal growth, and their activity level is high, so the ratio of staples to non-staples has age-specific characteristics. However, the ratio for the elderly is different from that for teenagers.
Nowadays, the number of patients with gastrointestinal diseases has increased compared to the past, and the incidence rate among teenagers is trending towards a younger age. This is related to the blind and indiscriminate "overeating" of many only children who are doted on at home.