Why can't corn replace rice as the staple food?

Now that people's living standards have improved, people have begun to pay attention to the food they eat every day, and the daily diet is more balanced than before. Now our staple food is white rice, and corn is also very common in life. If you eat too much corn, you will feel full. Then someone will ask, can corn replace white rice and become the staple food? The answer is no, why can't corn replace white rice as the staple food? The following small series will lead everyone to see what the reason is. Corn is the main grain feed and the main energy feed in China. The composition of corn (grain) is roughly as follows: starch (69-72%), fiber (1.5-2.5%), fat (3.5-6.5%), sugar (1-3%), and some protein and ash.

boiled rice, that is, the rice mentioned by the subject, is roughly composed of starch (about 9%), protein (about 8%), and the rest is fat, minerals and vitamins.

Human practical staple food mainly absorbs energy from it. The source of energy is sugar, specifically glucose (glucose undergoes glycolysis and tricarboxylic acid cycle in the body to provide energy for the body and synthesize various amino acids necessary for the human body, etc.), while starch is a polymer of glucose, which can be commonly considered as a single glucose molecule hand in hand to form starch.

Then starch can be decomposed into glucose, which is necessary for human survival.

So the first reason:

From the above composition, eating the same amount of corn and white rice can provide more energy to the human body. In ancient times, humans may not understand this truth, but they found that white rice was more hungry, so they gradually took white rice as their staple food.

the second aspect:

corn contains a lot of fiber, but the human body can't digest fiber (without cellulase), so eating too much corn will make you feel uncomfortable. Now that the living standard is high, experts advocate eating coarse grains such as corn, which is to use the characteristics of more fiber in corn to promote gastrointestinal peristalsis.

But white rice does not have this problem, which is the second reason: white rice is more conducive to digestion.

add the third aspect of the topic: taste.

Corn tastes good when eaten, because (tender corn) absorbs some water during steaming or cooking, and its own water content is higher, and tender corn fiber and protein are intertwined, which makes people feel smooth and tender. In addition, corn itself contains some glucose, which is sweet, so it is more delicious. If you eat old corn all day, it is not so delicious because of its high fiber content.

In fact, if you chew rice slowly, it will taste sweet, because the amylase contained in human saliva will break down starch into glucose and oligosaccharides, which can also produce sweetness. The subject can try it (please try it without drinking, smoking or eating irritating food).

In today's high living standard, the vitamins contained in corn can be easily obtained from other vegetables and meat. In addition, long-term single practical corn will cause niacin deficiency, commonly known as pellagra, mainly manifested as dermatitis, diarrhea and dementia, and oral niacin will take effect within one day. ? I believe that after reading the above article, everyone has a clear understanding of why corn can't replace white rice and become a staple food. I hope that Xiaobian's article can help everyone.