Does ‘Maida’ Cause Diabetes? The Dark Side of Maida Flour

‘Hum to maida khaate he nahi’ is that one line that I get to hear from people as I sit to discuss their regimen with them. But let us see how often we are consuming and commutatively (COUNT YOUR MONTHLY CONSUMPTION OF MAIDA) it is adding to our daily meals.

• Biscuits, Rusks, Sandwiches in the morning (Yea! Even those gold ones much advocated by the doctors and dietitians)
• Choley Bhature, Kulche-Chole during lunchtime
• Momos, Maggie, Mathi, and Namkeen for evening snacks
• Noodles, Naan, Pizza and Pasta for the dinner

See yourself, the once-healthy (as far as organic disorders are concerned) Indian subcontinent is consuming too much white flour on an almost daily basis. 

What is Maida?

Maida is a WHITE POISON if that’s not too harsh to write in its ill praise. It is a bleached, refined and finely milled white flour made from wheat without any bran. From party sweets such as cakes, pastries, and doughnuts, to morning meals such as bread, biscuits and rusks, and evening snacks such as burgers, pizza, and namkeen.

‘Maida’ is an omnipresent ingredient or all-purpose flour and almost every vlogger is making you eat (indirectly creating a FOOD craving). A big reason for CHILDHOOD OBESITY you are seeing around is these fancy foods you just read above. So, pause a bit next time you bring these maida meals to your home. 

Ayurvedic view on ‘Maida’

Maida is a food that lacks ‘Prana‘ (Life) which means when any FOOD goes to a FACTORY and comes out FASHIONABLY but lacks vitality.

While wholewheat is sweet, unctuous, and heavy which increases Kapha, reduces Vata and Pitta; increases fertility, promotes strength to bone joints, gives longevity, and enhances the complexion, maida is the inverse of wheat in its qualities.

It is the super fine powder of wheat minus the nutrient qualities of wheat. Maida is sticky, slimy, and very heavy to digest. It remains in the intestine for a long duration and clogs the gut. It also contains a higher amount of carbohydrates and calories. This also explains the concept of Maida having no vitality or qualities in it.

It contains fewer fibres and nutrients than whole-grain wheat. Fibre is not digested in the body, but it helps in the formation of roughage and elimination of solid waste from the body which is present in wheat whereas maida, on the other hand, does not contain fibre giving rise to more toxins and causing blockages of nutrient carrying channels in the body.

This is precisely the reason people with excessive consumption of Maida face the problem of constipation. (Ever met someone from the US or Middle Eastern countries who binge too much-processed wheat bread and maida), they will tell you their woes.

Is ‘Maida’ Bad For Diabetics? 

Absolutely ‘Yes’ as not only Maida has a high glycemic index but also is heavy to digest. The sugar is released into the bloodstream immediately which in return makes the body pump more insulin to balance/control the level of sugar in the blood.

Fried maida products make it worse! When foods containing maida are fried — e.g. Samosa, Chaklis, Fried noodles, Cheese Pasta, Italian lasagnas — the body gets an overdose of fat and refined carbs, which clogs and disrupts your metabolism, leads to inflammation, hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance and eventually type-2 diabetes.

The regular consumption of Maida-meals makes it difficult for insulin to act on body cells and use sugar for energy, this is another energy people who consume maida complain of a lack of energy in the body. All this creates insulin resistance and constantly high sugar levels in the body and makes/requires the pancreas to produce more insulin and creates a state of hyperinsulinemia (means the high amount of insulin in the blood than what’s considered healthy) in the body.

Other Health Risks Due To Maida

1. Difficult to lose Weight:

The state of hyperinsulinemia makes people even more difficult in losing weight. Maida gives only empty calories in the body due to which we always get the feeling of being overfed and undernourished. Foods made from maida borrow nutrients from the body to aid their absorption, thereby depleting the body’s reserves of vitamins and minerals.

2. Cardiovascular Diseases:

Eating maida also raises your bad cholesterol (LDL), which is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular complications of diabetes. This is because refined carbohydrates can increase blood triglyceride levels, lower HDL (good) cholesterol, clogs arteries, raises blood pressure, disrupts blood sugar, keeps you hungry, makes you crave sweets, causes mood swings and ruins your health.

3. Constipation:

Maida is low in fiber, which can cause digestive problems such as constipation and bloating. Foods made with maida may also contain preservatives and additives that can further irritate the digestive system.

Healthy Alternatives of Maida- to be continued in the NEXT BLOG.