想健康何必吃粗粮 日本新型白米受捧

　　It could be the answer for the millions who find brown rice hard to swallow - healthy white rice。

　　若你也觉得糙米难以下咽的话，新型的健康白米或许是你不错的选择。

　　Scientists have refined the milling process to create a rice that has all the taste of white rice but many of the health benefits of brown rice。

　　科学家们发现，在生产健康白米的研磨过程中，不仅使其具有了普通白米的口感，同时还保留了糙米中所含有的健康元素。

　　What is more, experiments suggest it is good for the heart, helping keep a lid on blood pressure and protecting the arteries from narrowing。

　　另外，实验还指出，食用这种大米有助于控制血压，以及防止动脉硬化的发生。

　　And those who find brown rice tough and chewy will be glad to know that the taste is said to be indistinguishable from white rice。

　　对于那些苦于糙米口感不佳的人来说，健康白米的味道与普通的米饭几乎别无二致。

　　Brown and white rice both come from the same plant – but white rice is more highly processed, with more layers stripped away。

　　糙米与白米均产自于同一种作物，只是白米经过了精加工，研磨掉了更多的外壳。

　　The subaleurone layer, the thin skin responsible the heart benefits, is shaved off at the end of the process, when the milled grain is polished to a shine。

　　对于心脏健康大有好处的亚糊粉层在加工大米的最后一阶段，抛光阶段被研磨掉。

　　But it is left intact in the ‘healthy’ white rice, which is sold under the brand Kinme Mai in Japan。

　　而这种在日本市场面市的名为“Kinme Mai”的大米中，米粒表面健康的一层被保留了下来。

　　When heart expert Satoru Eguchi tested this layer in his lab, he showed it could be good for the heart。

　　日本心脏专家江口田中经过试验，发现其对于心脏大有好处。

　　His experiments focused on a hormone called angiotensin II, which raises blood pressure by contracting the arteries. It also plays a role in hardening of the arteries by making the cells that line the inside of blood vessels grow。

　　一种叫血管紧张素Ⅱ的激素会促使动脉收缩，从而使得血压上升，它同时还促进了血管硬化情况的发生。

　　Dr Eguchi, of Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia in the US, showed that the subaleurone layer blocked angiotensin II’s harmful effects in blood vessel cells in a dish。

　　江口田中的研究表面，亚糊粉层对于血管紧张素Ⅱ有显著的抑制作用。

　　Brown rice, in which only the hard outer husk is removed, is traditionally seen as the healthier choice because the lack of processing leaves it rich in fibre, vitamins and minerals.But brown rice fans should not be too smug, as some experts now believe that it is so hard to digest that many of the extra nutrients simply pass right through the body。

　　糙米仅剥掉了坚硬的外壳，保留了大米所富含的膳食纤维、维生素与矿物质，所以被不少人视为健康饮食的不二选择。不过也有人认为糙米过硬，很多营养难以被吸收，从而被白白的排除体外。