Jasmine rice: a high glycemic index next to basmati

In a crossover trial in 75 healthy Chinese, Malay and Asian-Indian men, jasmine rice had a glycemic index of 91 against 59 for basmati, measured in single-meal tests of 50 g carbohydrate. A second crossover trial in 20 healthy Chinese men found the same gap inside a full meal. Meals built on basmati gave lower glucose and insulin responses than the same meals with jasmine rice, whatever fat was added. Over longer periods the picture is less direct. In a 12-week randomized trial in 156 adults with at least two metabolic syndrome traits, a high glycemic index diet raised 8-hour average glucose in women by 23 percent on the first day and 37 percent by week 12, with no difference in men. Jasmine rice was one of several high glycemic starches in that diet. Observational data from seven cohorts of 352,384 people link each daily serving of white rice in general with an 11 percent higher risk of type 2 diabetes (RR 1.11, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.14).

How much is actually in it

• Neither USDA FoodData Central, UK CoFID nor the US survey database lists jasmine rice by name, so its nutrient profile rests on generic white long-grain rice. — USDA, CoFID and FNDDS name searches (n = 0) Evidence E source
  No named record

What a real portion looks like

• In a small crossover study, 5 oz (142 g) of cooked jasmine rice supplied 45 g of carbohydrate and left people hungrier than the same carbohydrate from potato. — 14 healthy adults aged 28-70, mixed meals with meat sauce and vegetables (n = 14) Evidence C source
  Hunger AUC rice 374 vs potato 263 mm min; rice 142 g, pasta 138 g, potato 337 g per 45 g carbohydrate
• US survey data weigh 1 cup of cooked plain white rice at 158 g, with a default portion of 4.2 oz (118 g), the closest record since FNDDS has no jasmine rice entry. — FNDDS portion weights for generic white rice (n = -) Evidence E source
  1 cup cooked 158 g; quantity not specified 118 g

What your body absorbs

• In a crossover trial in 75 healthy Asian men, jasmine rice had a glycemic index of 91 against 59 for basmati rice. — Healthy Chinese, Malay and Asian-Indian men, 25 each, 50 g available carbohydrate per test (n = 75) Evidence B source
  GI jasmine 91 (sd 21) vs basmati 59 (sd 15); insulinemic index 76 vs 57
• In a crossover trial in 75 Asian men, jasmine rice raised blood glucose more than basmati, and more chews per mouthful went with higher glucose response. — Healthy Chinese, Malay and Asian-Indian men, 50 g carbohydrate servings (n = 75) Evidence B source
  GR jasmine > basmati (P < 0.001); chews per mouthful positively associated with GR (JR P = 0.011)
• In a crossover trial in 20 healthy Chinese men, meals with 1.8 oz (50 g) of basmati rice gave lower glucose and insulin responses than the same meals with jasmine rice, whatever the fat type. — Healthy Chinese men, six isocaloric meals with 40 g fat and 50 g rice carbohydrate, 4 h (n = 20) Evidence B source
  Glucose, insulin and C-peptide iAUC lower with low-GI basmati than high-GI jasmine meals

What cooking and storage change

• A meta-analysis of 15 studies found cooking lowered arsenic, lead and cadmium in rice, with rinsing and parboiling ranking above steaming or microwaving. — 15 food analysis studies of rice cooking methods (n = 15 studies) Evidence C source
  Arsenic WMD -0.04 mg/kg (95% CI -0.05 to -0.03); ranking rinsed > parboiling > Kateh > pressure, microwave, steaming
• Laboratory data show cooking polished long-grain rice in excess water cuts inorganic arsenic by about 40%, but also removes 50 to 70% of added iron and B vitamins. — Multiple US market rice varieties, rinsed and unrinsed, varying cooking water (n = -) Evidence D source
  Inorganic As -40% long grain polished, -60% parboiled, -50% brown; enriched Fe, folate, niacin, thiamin -50 to 70%

What it does to your health

• In a 12-week trial in 156 adults at risk of diabetes, a high-GI diet built on jasmine rice and potato raised 8-hour glucose in women by up to 37% compared with a low-GI diet, but not in men. — Adults with at least two metabolic syndrome traits in Italy, Sweden and the US, 12 weeks (n = 156) Evidence B source
  Women: 8-h glucose +23% on day 1, +37% at 12 weeks (p < 0.05); men: no difference
• Observational data from 352,384 people link each daily serving of white rice with an 11% higher risk of type 2 diabetes, strongest in Asian populations. — Seven prospective cohorts in Asian and Western populations, 4 to 22 years follow-up (n = 352384) Evidence C source
  RR 1.11 (1.08 to 1.14) per serving/day; Asian highest vs lowest RR 1.55 (1.20 to 2.01); Western RR 1.12 (0.94 to 1.33)

Safety, limits and interactions

• Observational NHANES data on 2,323 US children link each extra quarter cup of cooked rice a day with 14.2% higher urinary arsenic. — US children aged 6-17, NHANES 2003-2008, no seafood in previous 24 h (n = 2323) Evidence C source
  +14.2% (95% CI 11.3 to 17.1%) total urinary arsenic per 0.25 cup cooked rice

What people believe that the data does not support

• No US or EU health claim names jasmine rice, and no study in the corpus measures arsenic in jasmine rice specifically. — Claim registers and PubMed corpus (n = 0) Evidence E source
  No claims, no jasmine-specific arsenic data

Who this works differently for

• Against a glucose reference, jasmine rice scored a glycemic index of 80 in Chinese adults versus 68 in Europeans. — 32 Chinese and 31 European adults aged 18-50 (n = 63) Evidence C source
  GI jasmine 80 vs 68 (P = 0.033); no difference when jasmine rice was the reference

The bottom line

No national food table lists jasmine rice by name. USDA, the UK CoFID table and the US survey database all fold it into generic white long-grain rice, so the nutrient figures you see elsewhere are borrowed. US survey data weigh 1 cup of cooked plain white rice at 158 g. In a small crossover study in 14 healthy adults, 5 oz (142 g) of cooked jasmine rice supplied 45 g of carbohydrate, and people reported more hunger afterward than with the same carbohydrate from potato. The glycemic index also shifts with who eats it. Against a glucose reference, jasmine rice scored 80 in 32 Chinese adults and 68 in 31 Europeans, a comparison between groups that were not randomized. In the 75-man trial, more chews per mouthful went with a higher glucose response, a correlation inside the trial. Arsenic is the caution for rice, and jasmine rice has not been tested on its own. We found no study measuring arsenic in jasmine rice specifically. Observational NHANES data on 2,323 US children aged 6 to 17 link each extra quarter cup of cooked rice a day with 14.2 percent higher urinary arsenic (95% CI 11.3 to 17.1), with rice type not recorded. We have no data here on arsenic from rice in babies, children under 6 or pregnant women, so this page cannot say how much rice is safe for them. Cooking changes the load. A meta-analysis of 15 food analysis studies found cooking lowered arsenic, lead and cadmium in rice, with rinsing and parboiling ranking above steaming or microwaving. In FDA laboratory tests, cooking polished long-grain rice in excess water cut inorganic arsenic by about 40 percent. The same method also removed 50 to 70 percent of the iron, folate, niacin and thiamin added to enriched rice. The two sources do not agree on how much rinsing helps. No US or EU health claim names jasmine rice. For blood sugar, the trials here favor basmati over jasmine rice, a finding from single meals in healthy men rather than in people with diabetes.

Sources

1. jsr-r8-12 · search result
   entity_brief.py jasmine rice: USDA records none; CoFID none among 2 886 UK foods; FNDDS none among 5 432 survey foods; variability_search.py jasmine rice: nothing found
   USDA FoodData Central, CoFID 2021, FNDDS 2021-2023 search, 2026-09-29 · checked 2026-09-29
2. jsr-r8-06 · clinical trial
   The quantities of staple providing 45 g carbohydrate were: Rice, 142 g; pasta, 138 g and potato 337 g.
   Nutrients, 2018 · checked 2026-09-29
3. jsr-r8-11 · dataset
   FNDDS 56205008 Rice, white, cooked, no added fat (fdc_id 2708408): 1 cup, cooked 158 g; Quantity not specified 118 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, food code 56205008 (fdc_id 2708408) · checked 2026-09-29
4. jsr-r8-01 · RCT (crossover)
   The overall mean GI for Jasmine rice and Basmati rice were 91 (sd 21) and 59 (sd 15), respectively.
   Br J Nutr, 2015 · checked 2026-09-29
5. jsr-r8-02 · RCT (crossover)
   The GR for jasmine rice was significantly higher than for basmati rice (P < 0.001).
   Eur J Nutr, 2016 · checked 2026-09-29
6. jsr-r8-03 · RCT (crossover)
   Glucose, insulin and c-peptide iAUCs were significantly lower after ingestion of low-GI than high-GI meals, independent of the type of fat.
   Eur J Nutr, 2018 · checked 2026-09-29
7. jsr-r8-08 · meta-analysis (food analysis)
   Furthermore, based on the subgroup analysis the overall rank order of cooking methods in the rice was rinsed > parboiling > Kateh > high-pressure, microwave, and steaming.
   Int J Environ Health Res, 2024 · checked 2026-09-29
8. jsr-r8-09 · food analysis (FDA)
   Excess water cooking reduces average inorganic As by 40% from long grain polished, 60% from parboiled and 50% from brown rice.
   Food Addit Contam Part A 2016 · checked 2026-09-29
9. jsr-r8-04 · RCT
   In women, the high-GI induced significantly higher (23%, p < 0.05) 8-h average plasma glucose concentrations in comparison to the low-GI diet already on the first day of the intervention; the difference increased up to 37% (p < 0.05) after 12 weeks of diet.
   Clin Nutr, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29
10. jsr-r8-07 · meta-analysis (observational)
    In the total population, the dose-response meta-analysis indicated that for each serving per day increment of white rice intake, the relative risk of type 2 diabetes was 1.11 (1.08 to 1.14) (P for linear trend<0.001).
    BMJ, 2012 · checked 2026-09-29
11. jsr-r8-10 · cross-sectional
    After adjusting for potentially confounding factors, and restricting the study to participants who did not consume seafood in the preceding 24 hr, total urinary arsenic concentration increased 14.2% (95% confidence interval: 11.3, 17.1%) with each 0.25 cup increase in cooked rice consumption.
    Environ Health Perspect, 2012 · checked 2026-09-29
12. jsr-r8-13 · search result
    claims_search.py jasmine rice: nothing in 21 CFR 101; euclaims_search.py jasmine rice: nothing; corpus_search.py (jasmine OR fragrant OR Thai OR basmati) AND rice AND arsenic: found 0
    21 CFR 101 and EU Register on nutrition and health claims (snapshot 2026-09-21), search · checked 2026-09-29
13. jsr-r8-05 · clinical trial (non-randomized)
    The GIs of rice tended to be higher in the Chinese compared with the Europeans when glucose was used as a reference (jasmine 80 vs 68, P = 0.033; basmati 67 vs 57, P = 0.170; brown 78 vs 65, P = 0.054; Doongara 67 vs 55, P = 0.045; parboiled 72 vs 57, P = 0.011).
    Nutr J, 2014 · checked 2026-09-29