The apparent amylose content (AC), the linear fraction of
starch, is the major factor affecting cooked rice texture
(Juliano 2010). Milled rice AC determination by iodine
colorimetry has been improved by replacing pH 4.5
acetate buffer with pH 9.2 ammonium buffer to yield AC
values closer to those obtained through differential
scanning calorimetry of crystallization enthalpy of
amylose-lysolecithin complex (Juliano et al. 2012). The
AC of milled rice in ammonium buffer in the Philippine
breeding program and in retail markets has progressively
decreased from high (> 22%) to intermediate (17–22%)
and low (10–17%) since the 1980s, as Filipino consumers
now prefer softer cooked rice (Juliano 2010).
The lower AC of rice may induce higher glycemic
index (GI) (Juliano and Goddard 1986; Juliano et al.
1989; Atkinson et al. 2008; Fitzgerald et al. 2011;
Trinidad et al. 2013) and non-insulin or type 2 diabetes.
GI is widely recognized as a reliable physiologically
based classification of foods according to their
postprandial glycemic effect as follows: low, ≤ 55;
medium, 56–69 and high, ≥ 70, based on glucose as 100
(Jenkins et al. 1981). Replacing milled rice with brown
rice decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes in US (Sun et al.
2010) and Chinese (Zhang et al. 2011) men and wom