The Monmouth inquirer., 1924-10-02
~ unpoIiehed and uneoated Rice

~ Unpublished and Uneoated Rice
An investigation by the department
shows a widespread popular misunder-
standing of the various kinds Of rice
on the market. The true distinction
between the polishing and coating pro
cesses and the corresponding polished
and coated rices does not seem to be
clearly appreciated.
Rice from the threshers, culled in
the Philippine Islands palay, is hulled
In many places by pounding BY hand,
but usually In machine designed TO
remove the outer coat without injuring
the seed. This product is almost all
ways polished in order to please the
fancies and conform to the established
requirements of the consumers.
The polishing process, as understood
in the Orient and by the best author
tiles in this country, refers to the rub
bling or securing of the grains in var
--ious machines by which most of the
bran coat or pericarp is removed. This
product is often coated to improve It's
appearance. The coating process re-
fers to the addition of glucose, tale, or
other foreign material to the surface
of the already polished grain. The
peoples of Asia use some true unpolish-
ed rice; that is, rice from which the
huIls have been removed but on which
the bran coat remains nearly intact.
Such an article Is very seldom furnish
ed In the United States where the
market supply is composed principally
of polished rice, most of which has also
been coated. Polishing removes a con-
siderable portion Of The fat, fiber and
inorganic salts as well as favor from
the grain and some substances vital
to nutrition.
The whole question has aroused con-
siderable interest in this country be
cause 1t has been shown that the dis
ease known as beriberi, which is COM
mon In the Orient, is due to the con-
sumption, as the main article of diet.
of rice that has had the bran coat re-
moved. This bran layer, in the case
of the people who live largely on rice,
is the only source of certain COM
pounds necessary to the processes of
nutrition. The absence of these COM
bounds in the ration results in beri-
fberi. Those who eat a varied diet get
these elements in other foods.
Formerly In the Orient rice was mill
ed to a great extent by hand or by in
adequate machinery, SO that little more
was done than to pound of the coarse
outer hull, leaving the bran layer Of
the rice nearly intact With the in
PRODUCTION Of modern machinery into
the Orient the extensive machine mill
ing of rice has developed. Much rice
In the Orient is now very highly milled,
so that all the bran coat is removed.
1T is believed by the health authorities
of the Philippine Islands that highly
polished rice tends to produce beriberi
among the natives. For this reason
the Philippine Government permits its
hospitals, jails and public institutions
to use only rics that has not been high
ly polished The elimination Of beri-
beri from these institutions has re-
suited.
This fact has been made use Of By
certain manufacturers and food lad
hdists in this country to brighten the
public, and by so doing to gain mar
ket for their product. They have called
their rice unpublished" when as a
matter Of fact in many cases the rice
they were selling would not be per-
united in the institutions controlled
by the Philippine Government. All the
circumstances In the case should be
considered Since it has been pro On
that Filipinos, Chinese, japanese and
Eother Asiatics and Malaysians contract
beriberi by eating highly milIed, pol
gihed rice, it does not follow that eat
ling such rice in the United States is
dangerous. If the American people
lived almost wholly on rice, as do many
FIlipinos, Chinese, japanese and other
peoples, it would certainly be danger.
Gus. However, in America rice con-
stitutes only small proportion Of the
diet, and with the variety Of foods
usually consumed no danger whatever
of contracting beriberi or similar
diseases is likely to come from eating
polished rice.