One other weight reduction pattern has been making the rounds on TikTok, and this time it’s one thing known as Ricezempic, the place you drink rice water. After I first noticed the title, I actually thought it was a joke. However the extra I scrolled, the extra folks I noticed claiming it really works.
So naturally, I made a decision to dive deeper into this pattern to see if it really had legs or not.
The drink is being promoted as a do-it-yourself various to GLP-1 medicines like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound. The recipe itself is surprisingly easy. You soak raw rice in water for a short while, then take away the rice and drink the leftover water.
To be frank, earlier than even diving into issues, my senses all instructed me that there’s no manner Ricezempic goes to supply related outcomes to precise GLP-1 medicines. And whereas I just about already satisfied myself this was a bunch of BS, I continued down the rabbit gap.
TikTok customers say it’s finest to have it very first thing within the morning earlier than consuming something. The concept behind it’s that the rice water accommodates resistant starch, which supposedly suppresses urge for food and helps you are feeling full for longer, considerably like GLP-1 medicine.
Some claims on-line are fairly dramatic. One TikToker even says they misplaced 60 kilos in simply two months by consuming Ricezempic.
However can a glass of rice water actually replicate the consequences of prescription weight reduction medicine? Let’s dive deeper.
Disclaimer: This text is for informational functions solely and shouldn’t be used to deal with or diagnose any situation. It is suggested that you just converse along with your physician earlier than beginning any train program, making adjustments to your vitamin plan, or including any new dietary dietary supplements into your present routine.
What’s Ricezempic?
On-line well being influencers utilizing the “Ricezempic” hashtag usually evaluate rice water to Ozempic (semaglutide), a Kind 2 diabetes treatment that many individuals now use off-label for weight reduction. After I first noticed these comparisons, I used to be curious. It sounded virtually too easy to be true (which most TikTok traits are).
The pattern can also be using the wave of different related “zempic-style” drinks circulating on-line, equivalent to:
- “Oat-zempic” — consuming the water from soaked oats for weight reduction
- Okra water — soaking okra and consuming the water for weight reduction, sexual well being, and different supposed advantages
When one thing turns into as well-known as Ozempic, it’s solely pure that folks attempt to replicate it with cheaper options. Rice water definitely suits that invoice. It’s easy and cheap, but it surely isn’t actually the identical as Ozempic.
3 Advantages of Rice Water
Let’s take a look at among the advantages of rice water used as Ricezempic.
1. Weight reduction
The primary argument behind rice water is that it could help weight reduction as a result of it supposedly accommodates resistant starch. Resistant starch is a sort of carbohydrate that’s tougher for the physique to interrupt down, so it behaves extra like fiber than common starch.
Some analysis suggests resistant starch could assist cut back urge for food. In sure research, folks reported feeling fuller and fewer hungry in contrast with after they consumed common starch. However the proof isn’t constant.
Different studies have discovered little to no impact on urge for food, so the analysis stays combined.
A much bigger subject is whether or not rice water really accommodates resistant starch within the first place. Resistant starch usually kinds when rice is cooked, cooled, after which reheated. That raises an apparent query.
If rice water is made by soaking uncooked rice, does it comprise any resistant starch?
To this point, analysis hasn’t supplied a transparent reply. Most research deal with cooked rice as a result of that’s the way it’s usually eaten, which leaves the resistant starch content material of uncooked rice water largely unexplored.
2. It helps the microbiome
As a result of resistant starch isn’t totally digested, it behaves like a prebiotic fiber within the intestine. In easy phrases, it helps feed the helpful micro organism that dwell in your digestive system, which might help a more healthy intestine microbiome.
If rice water really accommodates resistant starch, and that is still unclear, it might supply some help for intestine well being.
3. Important nutritional vitamins & minerals
If the rice you’re utilizing is white rice processed within the U.S., there’s an opportunity it has been enriched with added vitamins. These can embody nutritional vitamins and minerals equivalent to thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, iron, calcium, and folic acid.
In principle, a few of these vitamins would possibly leach into the water when the rice is soaked. Which means the water you drink might comprise small quantities of them. Nobody actually is aware of how a lot really leads to the water, although.
It additionally relies on the kind of rice you’re utilizing. Imported rice is commonly not enriched, so it could not comprise added nutritional vitamins and minerals.
In that case, the rice water wouldn’t supply any additional dietary profit.
What Are the Dangers of Rice Water?
Should you’re allergic to rice or have hassle tolerating it, you need to keep away from rice water altogether.
Rice can comprise arsenic, a poisonous heavy steel that has been linked to coronary heart issues, kidney injury, and sure cancers. Arsenic happens naturally in soil and water, and rice tends to soak up extra of it than many different grains.
In terms of soaking uncooked rice and consuming the water, the priority is theoretical. It’s attainable that some arsenic might leach into the water throughout soaking. However with out correct research, nobody actually is aware of how a lot, if any, would find yourself there.
Ought to You Attempt the Rice Water Development?
I’m simply going to be completely blunt and name BS on consuming rice water. If you wish to be part of this Ricezempic motion, be my visitor. Nevertheless, don’t anticipate to see any adjustments to your weight.
Typically, it’s finest to only go away the hype alone. Most of the time, the juice isn’t well worth the squeeze, and I really feel that this TikTok pattern is simply one other huge failure.
Creator Bio:
Matt Weik, BS, CSCS, CPT, CSN, is a globally acknowledged well being, health, and complement trade knowledgeable with over 25 years of hands-on expertise. He’s the founding father of Weik Fitness and one of the prolific writers within the area, identified for translating complicated science into clear, actionable content material. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Penn State College and a number of trade certifications, giving his work each tutorial credibility and real-world authority. His writing has been featured on hundreds of internet sites and in 100+ magazines worldwide, together with FLEX, Muscular Growth, Iron Man, and Muscle & Health UK, and he has authored 30+ revealed books. Trusted by main complement manufacturers and media shops alike, Matt is broadly thought to be one of the educated and dependable voices in well being, health, and sports activities vitamin.
