Diet and Diabetes: Why Dr. Lee Says “Ease Back on Rice and Noodles, Add Protein and Healthy Fats”
By John Yang Lee, MDPublished
Adapted from reports in The Epoch Times / NTD; source links at the end.
The question we hear most in the exam room is a plain one: “Doctor, with my blood sugar, can I still eat rice at all?” As reported by The Epoch Times and NTD, John Yang Lee, MD answered it directly at a community health fair — start by easing back on starches, and bring protein and healthy fats back to the plate.
It isn’t a novel idea, but it’s the part many people never quite get right. Rice, noodles, and bread don’t taste sweet, yet what they turn into inside the body is sugar. As reported, the approach the doctor shared is simple: trim the staples a little, add some protein and fat, and blood sugar often follows downward.
Why staples come first
Many people assume managing sugar just means “no sweets” — so they skip candy, switch to sugar-free drinks, and keep the big bowl of rice or noodles as usual. As reported, the doctor’s reminder at the lecture was blunt: starch is a chain of sugars, and a bowl of white rice still hands the body a large load of sugar to process. The issue is often not the piece of candy, but the staple that shows up at every meal.
So the first step usually isn’t adding a supplement — it’s dialing the portion of staples down a notch and making room for protein and healthy fats. This is the doctor’s clinical experience as reported, not a prescription for everyone; how much to cut, and how, depends on the individual.
A food list you can follow
As reported by The Epoch Times, the doctor offered a very down-to-earth set of suggestions at the health fair — foods common in Chinese kitchens, easy to buy and easy to cook:
- Protein: meat, eggs, dairy, seafood, tofu
- Healthy fats: avocado, cheese, olive oil
- Nuts and seeds: peanuts, walnuts, almonds, sesame
The idea is straightforward: swap part of that big pile of rice and noodles for protein and healthy fats. You stay fuller, hold off hunger longer, and blood sugar tends to swing a little less.
People with diabetes should ease back on starches and add protein and fat — it can go a long way toward managing blood sugar.
One step at a time — don’t change everything at once
As reported, the doctor stressed “adjust,” not “cut out.” You don’t need to drop all rice and noodles today — that’s hard to keep up and may not suit everyone. The more practical move is to trim a little staple and add a little protein at each meal, hold it for a few weeks, and watch how your blood sugar and body respond.
Chronic care is never a one-time visit; it’s adjusting and watching over time. How to change your diet, whether to add activity, and what your numbers should look like are best decided after an in-person evaluation, based on your own situation.
