Known as the Standard American Diet (though Wikipedia calls it the Western pattern diet), it is "generally characterized by high intakes of pre-packaged foods, refined grains, red and processed meat, high-sugar drinks, candy and sweets, fried foods, high-fat dairy products (such as butter), eggs, potato products, and corn products (including high-fructose corn syrup). Conversely, there are generally low intakes of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, nuts, and seeds."
It's generally agreed-upon to be unhealthy, but how to move away from it is a much harder question. Capitalism, food deserts, willpower, etc etc all get talked about. But regardless of whether or not it's a good thing, how SAD is your diet?
Photo taken from https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Walmart_Wenatchee.jpg
My diet has improved considerably since November. I have made a consistent effort to improve my overall health these last few months and that has included improvements to my diet. I have cut all fast food, cut sugary drinks, and have focused on eating only homecooked meals that include lots of veggies, rice, and lean meats. It's been great, and I must say I also feel better for it too. The most notable change is I don't feel so bloated all the time, which is something I had noticed in the past but didn't pay much attention to because it was kinda the norm for me with my old crappy diet. It was well worth the efforts to change.
Rice is a highly refined form of carbohydrates, which turns into glucose when digested. You could consider cutting that out as well.
I like brown/wild rice :)
If you're coming from a place of fast food and soda, rice is great and a huge improvement. Congratulations!
Brown or wild rice is only marginally less carbohydrates than white rice, I'm afraid. At a serving size of 150g, white rice is the same as eating 9.6 teaspoons of table sugar, and brown rice is 7.3 teaspoons.
Also take a look at other foods in terms of tsps of sugar, here: https://phcuk.org/sugar/