PETALING JAYA: Malaysians can help ease the shortage and prices of rice, sugar and certain food items by managing their unhealthy eating habits, say health experts.
They said that with the reported local rice shortage nationwide and sugar price also coming under pressure, it is high time for the people to adjust to a healthier diet.
Holistic health expert Datuk Dr Rajen M. said with Malaysia having the highest rate of diabetes in Asia and one of the highest in the world, it is time for people to reduce their rice and sugar intake.
“The problem with us is that we eat too much rice when we don’t actually need the amount on a daily basis. Cut it by half and it’ll still fill you up.
“Our diet is not balanced. One generation ago, Malaysians ate more ulam, brown rice and tempe but we don’t do that anymore.
“So, there is a solution to the shortage and we can control the price based on our consumption behaviour,” he said when contacted.
Dr Rajen, who is chief executive officer of Holista Colltech Ltd, said white rice was simple starch that’s broken down rapidly in the body, leading to a surge of energy followed by a blood sugar crash and inevitably, hunger.
He suggested people to consume more fruits, vegetables, nuts and brown rice as these food items will make a person less hungry for a longer time, aside from being the healthier options.
“Us being the champion in diabetes and obesity is largely contributed by consuming too much carbohydrates, specifically roti canai, rice, 3-in-1 coffee and condensed milk.
“It is important to rethink and change our diets by replacing (rice and sugar) with vegetables. You don’t need expensive ones; cucumber, ulam and sawi are sufficient.
“This way, we can reduce our intake of rice and as for sugar, we have a technology that can increase the sweetness of sugar by five times, which means that we will be able to significantly reduce sugar content,” he said.
Last week, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim lamented the increase in diabetes cases among Malaysians, saying the people would be compelled to reduce their sugar intake if the price of the commodity increased.
He also suggested sugar subsidies be eliminated to curb rising cases of diabetes in the country.
Anwar said if the sugar subsidy was reduced and the price of the commodity increased, the government could channel the extra funds to the health sector to manage diabetes treatment.
“So our parents and our relatives with diabetes who need insulin can be helped with this money. That is our approach,” Anwar said on Oct 1 in Ipoh.
Nutrition Society of Malaysia president Dr Tee E Siong said it is important for the country to produce a variety of carbohydrates as this is the main source of energy.
Providing more choices of food items, he said, would ensure food security in Malaysia, aside from protecting the people from diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
“We must eat moderate amounts of sugar and rice. Of course, we need rice but we can replace several plates of rice a day with perhaps tapioca and sweet potato.
“We must have other alternatives because we can’t be self-sufficient with just rice. We need a variety of other sources of carbohydrates so that consumption of rice and sugar can be reduced,” he said.
In July, Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said based on the 2019 National Health & Morbidity Survey (NHMS) data, 18.3% or 3.9 million of the total population aged 18 and above suffered from diabetes.
Apart from that, she said 30% or 6.4 million people suffer from hypertension, while 38.1% or 8.1 million Malaysians have high cholesterol.
Recently, hypermarket chain Mydin said it was experiencing a shortage in the supply of local rice in its outlets, adding that such shortages were not new but claimed the situation now has become desperate.
In 2022, per capita consumption of rice in Malaysia or the average amount consumed per person was 77kg.
Last month, Deputy Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Fuziah Salleh was reported to have said the nation’s sugar industry would “crash” if its current price structure was not reviewed, adding that the review was in its final stages.
She added that the country’s two largest sugar producers – MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd and Central Sugars Refinery Sdn Bhd (CSR) – have to import 100% raw sugar.
The issue of sugar prices came about when India stopped exporting raw sugar, forcing Malaysia to seek imports from Brazil and Thailand, she said.
