Rice Cakes
Where rice cakes sit on the inflammation scale
Rice cakes are inflammatory, even the plain ones. They are made by heating milled white rice under pressure until the grains puff and stick together in a disc. Milling has already removed the bran and the germ, so what is left is almost pure starch, with little fibre, protein or fat to slow digestion. Your body turns that starch into blood sugar fast.
A fast rise in blood sugar after a meal is linked to a short burst of oxidative stress and inflammatory signalling in the blood vessels. That response is measured in the hours after eating, and it is not proof that rice cakes cause lasting inflammation. Eating whole grains instead does not reliably lower inflammation either: across 31 trials, whole grain foods improved at least one inflammation marker in fewer than half of them.
Rice cakes score 6 out of 10 on the inflammation scale because the rating covers the flavoured versions too, and because what goes on top decides most of the meal. A chocolate or caramel coating adds sugar on top of the starch, while avocado, nut butter or tinned fish add the fat and protein that slow digestion down.
Check the ingredients. Plain cakes list rice and salt; flavoured ones add sugar, refined oils and flavourings. Brown rice cakes keep a little fibre from the bran, but rice takes up more arsenic from the soil than other cereals, and the brown grain holds more of it.
Eat them as a base, not a snack on their own: a couple of cakes with something fatty or protein-rich on top. If rice is already your main grain, rotate in oats or barley.
Rice Cakes on the AIP diet
Rice cakes are not allowed on the Autoimmune Protocol. They are rice, and the elimination phase takes out every grain, puffed or not. White rice is one of the first grains tested when foods are reintroduced, because the bran has already been milled off and there is no gluten in it. For the crunch in the meantime, plantain or cassava crisps are the usual stand-in.
Benefits
- Gluten free and low in fermentable carbohydrates, so an irritable gut usually tolerates them
- Plain ones have two ingredients, rice and salt, which is rare in a packet snack
- About 35 calories a cake, so the portion is easy to see
- A useful base for protein and fat: nut butter, avocado, egg, tinned fish
Watch out for
- Puffed white rice digests fast, so blood sugar rises quickly and drops soon after
- Nothing is left of the bran or germ: almost no fibre, protein or minerals
- Rice takes up more arsenic from soil than other cereals, so vary your grains
- Flavoured and coated versions add sugar, refined oils and plenty of salt
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Frequently asked
Are rice cakes inflammatory?
Mildly. There is nothing irritating in a rice cake, but puffed white rice is almost pure starch with no fibre left to slow it down, so it lifts blood sugar quickly and lets it drop soon after. A cake or two with protein and fat on top behaves very differently from half a packet eaten alone.
Are rice cakes good for weight loss?
They are light, about 35 calories each, and that is the whole appeal. The catch is that they do not fill you up, so the packet goes down fast and the hunger comes back. Put something with protein and fat on top and two cakes will hold you much longer.
Are brown rice cakes better than white ones?
A little. The bran keeps some fibre and magnesium, so they digest more slowly. Arsenic collects in the outer layer of the grain, though, so brown carries more of it, and the same bran is harder work for an inflamed gut.
Can I eat rice cakes on an anti-inflammatory diet?
Yes, as a base rather than a snack on its own. Buy the plain ones, keep it to a couple, and put protein and fat on top. The Autoimmune Protocol is the exception, because its elimination phase removes every grain.
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