The One Carb Dietitians Want You to Eat More Often (It’s Not Brown Rice)

Carb-rich foods are often — and wrongfully! — demonized, but your body needs them for energy and other key functions. In fact, there's one carb dietitians say you should be eating more of: Quinoa.

Technically a seed, quinoa comes in a variety of colors, including red, yellow, black and white, per the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Indigenous to the Andean region of South America — Chile, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru — quinoa has been cultivated for around 5,000 years.

There are plenty of reasons this seed has staying power: It's a carb-rich food that helps you stay satiated while providing important nutrients. While brown rice is often thought of as the epitome of a healthy carb, here's why dietitians want you to favor quinoa.

When a food contains all nine essential amino acids that your body can't make on its own, it's considered a complete protein. You need to get these amino acids through food unlike the other 11 amino acids you produce on your own, per the Cleveland Clinic. Most complete proteins come from animal sources.

"Quinoa is also a complete protein source, which is pretty rare in plant-based proteins," says Amanda Miller, RD. "Other plant-based proteins often only have some of the nine essential amino acids."

A 1/2 cup serving of quinoa contains 4.1 grams of protein, compared to just 2.8 grams of protein you'll get in brown rice.

Protein is an essential macronutrient, and it helps your body repair and create cells, making it particularly important for growth and development in children, teens and pregnant people, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

This seed's unique nutritional profile will help you stay full for longer, which may prevent you from overeating later.

"I recommend quinoa over other starchy grains such as brown rice because it has satiating protein and fiber, keeping you feeling full for longer," says Morgyn Clair, RDN.

Try to eat foods that have some fat, fiber and protein at every meal. The fiber helps you feel full right away, the protein keeps you satiated for longer and the fat tells you to stop eating by working with the hormones in your body. On the other hand, overly processed carbs like white bread or crackers are quickly digested and turned into blood sugar quickly, per Harvard Health Publishing.

Quinoa fits the mold perfectly: In addition to 4.1 grams of protein, it contains 2.6 grams of fiber and 1.8 grams of fat.

Eating a wider variety of carbohydrates like quinoa can also benefit your gut health, and in turn, your appetite: Several studies suggest that gut hormones affect appetite control, per a January 2012 review in ​Nutrition & Diabetes​​.​

Apart from controlling your appetite, eating fiber helps normalize bowel movements and maintains bowel health, lowers cholesterol levels, helps control blood sugar levels, contributes to a healthy weight and is associated with a lower risk of dying from heart disease and all cancers, per the Mayo Clinic.

The glycemic index (GI) of a food refers to how quickly or slowly it increases blood glucose levels, per Harvard Health Publishing. It's important for people with pre-diabetes or diabetes to focus on low-GI foods, as high-GI foods can spike blood sugar in both groups.

"Quinoa has a slightly lower glycemic index, which means the carbohydrates are released into your blood at a slower rate, helping to maintain stable blood sugar levels and leave you feeling fuller for longer," Stricoff says.

Quinoa's GI score is 53, per The University of Sydney. See how it compares to other popular carby foods:

• Brown rice: 66
• White rice: 72
• Whole-wheat bread: 74

For context, high-GI foods are considered those with a GI greater than 55, per the university. Low-GI foods are those with a GI less than 55. Foods with little or no carbohydrates (such as meat, fish, eggs and avocado) don't have a GI value.

Even if you don't have diabetes, aiming for foods with a lower glycemic index can help you control your blood sugar — and, consequently, your feelings of hunger.

"When we can maintain more stable blood sugar, we decrease the risk of having hyper- or hypoglycemic moments, regardless of diabetes or prediabetes diagnosis," Stricoff says. "This means we can stabilize our hunger levels and increase satiety with meals."

A 1/2 cup serving of quinoa has nearly 2 grams of unsaturated fatty acids.

"The added healthy fats help to balance the quinoa between carbohydrates, protein, fat and fiber, which is an ideal combination in a single food," Stricoff says. "The healthy fats can also contribute to the increased satiety experienced when eating quinoa."

While saturated fat and trans fat can increase your risk of heart disease, healthy fats like monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids and omega-3 fatty acids can benefit your health, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Quinoa contains a little bit of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Research shows that eating these types of fats instead of saturated fats can improve your blood cholesterol levels, which can lower your risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes, per the Mayo Clinic.

If you're used to ​only​ eating brown rice as your healthy carb-rich staple, there's a slight chance you could load up on inorganic arsenic, a human carcinogen.

"Arsenic in rice is a big concern if most of your diet consists of rice," Miller says. "However, you're at less risk if rice is only one small component of your diet."

When analysts looked at the inorganic arsenic content of 656 processed rice-containing products through data released by the Food and Drug Administration, they found that brown rice had 80 percent more inorganic arsenic on average than white rice of the same type, per Consumer Reports. That's because arsenic accumulates in the grain's outer layers that are stripped to make white rice.

Brown basmati from California, India or Pakistan is the best choice because it has a third less arsenic than other brown rice. All types of rice from Arkansas, Louisiana or Texas — except sushi and quick-cooking rice — had the highest levels of inorganic arsenic in the Consumer Reports tests.

Quinoa, on the other hand, is a low-arsenic seed that's a good source of protein. Even if you're not concerned with arsenic based on the amount of brown rice you eat, it's still a good idea to fill your diet with a variety of foods for the most health benefits.

"Switching up your healthy carbohydrate sources, such as by adding quinoa, provides you with a variety of nutrients throughout the week," Stricoff says.

Quinoa is simple to cook, and is even available in convenient microwaveable pouches. If you're making it from scratch, follow these simple tips, per the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach:

• Store quinoa at room temperature.
• Prepare it as you would rice: Combine 1 part dry seed to 2 parts liquid.
• Use either water or broth to cook your quinoa. Once the seeds and liquid mixture has been heated on high and reached a rolling boil, reduce to low and simmer for 15 minutes, covered.
• Enjoy quinoa at lunch or dinner as a hot or cold side dish, or use it as a base for breakfast porridge.