Hi, Neil!

If you gotta eat rice, here's some info that may interest you,

Jane
Tucson, AZ  USA
formerly of Beaverton, OR

http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s225249.htm

Soaked brown rice is better for you
Tuesday, 19 December  2000

A team of Japanese scientists has found that germinating brown rice by
soaking it for several hours before it is cooked - enhances its already
high nutritional value.

The findings were presented last week at the 2000 International Chemical
Congress of Pacific Basin Societies.

Germinated rice contains much more fibre than conventional brown rice, say
the researchers, three times the amount of the essential amino acid lysine,
and ten times the amount of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), another amino
acid known to improve kidney function.

The researchers also found that brown rice sprouts - tiny buds less than a
millimetre tall - contain a potent inhibitor of an enzyme called
protylendopetidase, which is implicated in Alzheimer's disease.

They determined that germination activates enzymes that liberate additional
nutrients.

"The birth of a sprout activates dormant enzymes in the brown rice all at
once to supply the best nutrition to the growing sprout," explained Dr
Hiroshi Kayahara, the lead investigator on the project, and a biochemist
from Shinshu University in Nagano, Japan.

Rice, whether brown or white, is a major part of most Asian diets, often
eaten with nearly every meal, however the Western diet tends to contain a
lot less rice.

To make the rice sprout, the researchers soaked it in water at 32 degrees C
for 22 hours. The outer bran layer softened and absorbed water easily,
making the rice easier to cook. Cooked sprouted rice has a sweet flavor,
the researchers report, because the liberated enzymes break down some of
the sugar and protein in the grain.

White rice will not germinate using this process, notes Kayahara.