Has he gone to any diabetes education classes yet? I'm off two minds on the counting calories issue. First, if he is very overweight, then literally counting calories may be the only way he can learn proper portion control and balancing. On the flip side, if he is NOT very overweight, then he needs to be paying less attention to calories, and more attention to carbohydrates. Carbs are sugar. A type II diabetic is often instructed to count CARBS...not calories. If you are counting carbs correctly, then the calories drop on their own.

Now...the white rice issue. White rice is fine if a person is basically healthy, however, white rice (and potatoes) is a starch. Starches convert to sugar almost immediately upon entering the digestive system. It is a very high glycemic index food. This means it converts to sugar quickly, is quickly absorbed, and is long lasting. Short of eating pure sugar, white rice and potatoes are among the most dangerous foods for a type II diabetic to eat. Asian countries have an extremely low carb diet aside from the rice. In fact, in many meals, rice is the only item that has any carb content of any consequence. In contrast, many Hispanic countries have rice as a large portion of their diet. However, they also eat many other high carb foods. Hispanics are among those at highest risk of developing type II diabetes. So yes, white rice can be a good food, but one has to look at the entire diet in determining that. Also, if a person is already diabetic (or insulin resistant), then white rice is definitely not a good food.