Chinese restaurant food unhealthy, study says

[crikey]

Study reveals nutritional pitfalls of Chinese food (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17718517/wid/11915773?GT1=9145). Menus loaded with sodium, saturated fat and calories — even the veggies.

Still yummy, IMO.

[leadingsimon]

I always thought it was more of a common fact among us. All we can really do is to balance your meals and fitness procedures.

[thegazelle]

Study reveals nutritional pitfalls of Chinese food (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17718517/wid/11915773?GT1=9145). Menus loaded with sodium, saturated fat and calories — even the veggies.

Still yummy, IMO.

Can't say I'm surprised. I would say that in general, Chinese restaurant food (and in particular, the food court take out food) tends it be very greasy, fried in oil, etc. There's also the MSG that is in some of it, as well as how the meats are prepared (ie. baking soda to tenderize meat, etc.)

I agree, however, that even food court take out Chinese food is healthier (in general) than MCDonald's or KFC. Even if the veggies are fried with your noodles or rice, at least there are veggies in it, and ample amounts.

There are alternatives, however. I am far from a health nut, but having a wife who works for Weight Watchers part-time has obviously had some impact on me. I used to eat ZERO vegetables until I was about 31. Now, going on 34, I do have a fair amount of STEAMED veggies (I can't stand salad with dressing) and fruits. Even when I do eat at a, say, Harvey's, I will insist on a garden salad, even though I don't like salad) - I have totally changed in that I do not like French fries anymore. You can actually order some healthier Chinese dishes that use more steaming rather than frying. One of the dishes I like uses tofu, veggies and pork in a sauteed style sauce. It's not overly greasy like fried noodles with beef.

You can also order a simple garlic brocolli dish - there's still a sauce with it (white garlicy sauce), but it's not very oily. And it's not laced with soy sauce either, which I imagine is from where much of the sodium comes.

All that being said, the old adage is correct - you get what you pay for. Can a Chinese food takeout dish for $3.99 be that much more healthier for you than a McDonald's meal for $3.99? Perhaps, but again, in order to deliver large portions at low cost, something has to give. I suspect the meat (lower grade, poorer quality overly tenderized) is where the most common scrimping point is.

One thing I would also add is that the portions are pretty unbalanced. A take out dish can be eaten by one person, but it's way too much food. After eating Chinese takeout for years, I found that I could do crazy stuff like eat an entire large pizza with 3 toppings all by myself. That's pretty gross, if you think of it, and my co-workers did not find it funny or impressive. Since I've eaten more at home in the last couple of years, I am unable to eat 3/4 of a pizza now, which I think is a good thing. My definition of what a porition is more in line with what Health Canada believes to be healthy. I know that eating a take out container of fried noodles that weighs 6 pounds, all by myself, is probably not great, health-wise.

I probably imagine that the healthiest meals are still the ones that you make fresh at home - at least you know what's going into it.

[duckdown]

does this come as a surprise to you?

EVERYTHING is fried, loaded with salt & msg, and topped with some kind of sweet stuff

No real surprise here :D

Oh, lets not forget how bloody oily it always is. After you eat at TREMENDOUS the grease practically comes out of your pores

[infinite.chaoz]

these restaurants give chinese food a bad name

[crikey]

does this come as a surprise to you?

EVERYTHING is fried, loaded with salt & msg, and topped with some kind of sweet stuff

No real surprise here :D

Oh, lets not forget how bloody oily it always is. After you eat at TREMENDOUS the grease practically comes out of your pores

What I'm surprised about is that some organization actually made a study about it, not that Chinese food is unhealthy. :)

[JAGpilot]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian. Thank god for my fast metabolism!

(a funny thing is my iTunes switched to "Fitter Happier" by Radiohead when I opened this thread.)

[hightechfan]

Study reveals nutritional pitfalls of Chinese food (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17718517/wid/11915773?GT1=9145). Menus loaded with sodium, saturated fat and calories — even the veggies.

Still yummy, IMO.

The same goes for any fast food joint.Do people stop going there no.

[MasterXan]

a lot of Chinese restaurants are moving away from salt and MSG but instead, they use chicken flavoring (ie. the stuff from knorr)

:D

[df329]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian. Thank god for my fast metabolism!

(a funny thing is my iTunes switched to "Fitter Happier" by Radiohead when I opened this thread.)


Asian people aren't skinny because they have fast metabolisms... they just don't eat as much food.

[afong56]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian.

how about mao? or kim jong il? sumo wrestlers?

[gordholio]

If you eat at any fast-food place a lot it's unhealthy.
Just do it rarely and you'll be okay. :)

[x95zsk]

MSG!!!! that's the biggest source of sodium.

we don't use it at all at home, but the other sauces have them. I would be interested when MSG is not used.

[UrbanPoet]

yep...... i thought everyone knew this.
the non fattening chinese food doesnt taste that great....
except for steamed fish. But that is steamed in soy sauce! so its high in MSG...

[duckdown]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian

good one, Beavis

[evoviii]

Chinese food courts, restaurants, etc. if they aren't heavy in carbs i.e. rice or noodles, it's pretty damn greasy.

Chinese diet used to be considered good but they were looking at the poor chinese peasant diet who couldn't afford much rice, nothing fried and plenty of veggies.

then again hard to find healthy fast food. Though I think just by looking at chinese dishes, it's easy to judge whether it's good for you. What makes it worse is that now, it's often cheaper than even mcdonald's.

[zbigniew]

how about mao? or kim jong il? sumo wrestlers?

They don't eat Chinese food. They eat their opponents, that's why!

:D

[Alvito]

Study reveals nutritional pitfalls of Chinese food (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17718517/wid/11915773?GT1=9145). Menus loaded with sodium, saturated fat and calories — even the veggies.

Still yummy, IMO.

did we really need a study to tell us this?

[JAGpilot]

sumo wrestlers eat high fat foods all day and then lay around on their ass. Thats how they get fat. I saw a show on it.

[keanefan]

try Shanghai restaurant

Chiu Chow restaurant

stop going to cheap / low-priced Chinese restaurant

medium price or expensive Chinese restaurant is better

stop going to Chinese buffet

:arrow:

[DavidY]

Almost every type of restaurant has unhealthy food. For example, while I really like Indian food...it isn't very healthy...eg. samosas, butter chicken, etc. English food like fried fish and chips, meat and potatoes, etc. isn't too healthy either. Good and bad with every type of food. Dim sum is another one that is a hazard to one's body...very meat or fried oriented.

Dave

[UrbanPoet]

sumo wrestlers eat high fat foods all day and then lay around on their ass. Thats how they get fat. I saw a show on it.

i thought they just eat a diet high in high G.I carbs...
eg rice and potatoes...

[M@rk]

The study mentioned stuff like "General Tso’s chicken" and "the battered, fried chicken dish with vegetables". That's like either fast food or White Chinese food.

As keanefan mentioned, an actual quality Chinese restaurant is pretty healthy. When I go to restaurants I use the lack of MSG and greasiness as a sign of quality.

[Akuma_kumite]

I think the study is biased, every cultural cuisine has its "unhealthy" factors. Some North American food is unhealthy too such as Canadian bacon with juicy fat, poutine with extra chunk of cheese, beefy hamburgers, pizza, fatty sausages, French fries with **** load of trans-fat oil, foie gras, KFC fried chickens, should I go on? On the other hand, people have the wrong perception thinking that Chinese food is all about deep fried with MSG and saturated oil. But what about other healthy Chinese such as tufo, steamed fish, wonton mein, hot pot, dumplings, etc

Did you know that vegetarianism is not uncommon or unusual in Chinese cuisine? The Chinese vegetarian does not eat a lot of tofu, unlike the stereotypical impression in the West. Most Chinese vegetarians are Buddhists. Non-Chinese people eating Chinese cuisine will note that a large number of popular vegetable dishes may actually contain meat (usually pork), as meat chunks or bits have been traditionally used to flavor dishes. Chinese Buddhist cuisine has many true vegetarian dishes that contain no meat at all.

[masterhapposai]

Asian people aren't skinny because they have fast metabolisms... they just don't eat as much food.

I've read studies showing that hyperthyroidism is high in asia, therefore this kind of diet which destroys metabolism would actually be good for you

and the food is terrible considering it can do that

definitely not good for anyone with regular or hypo thyroid

[masterhapposai]

I think the study is biased, every cultural cuisine has its "unhealthy" factors. Some North American food is unhealthy too such as Canadian bacon with juicy fat, poutine with extra chunk of cheese, beefy hamburgers, pizza, fatty sausages, French fries with **** load of trans-fat oil, foie gras, KFC fried chickens, should I go on? On the other hand, people have the wrong perception thinking that Chinese food is all about deep fried with MSG and saturated oil. But what about other healthy Chinese such as tufo, steamed fish, wonton mein, hot pot, dumplings, etc

Did you know that vegetarianism is not uncommon or unusual in Chinese cuisine? The Chinese vegetarian does not eat a lot of tofu, unlike the stereotypical impression in the West. Most Chinese vegetarians are Buddhists. Non-Chinese people eating Chinese cuisine will note that a large number of popular vegetable dishes may actually contain meat (usually pork), as meat chunks or bits have been traditionally used to flavor dishes. Chinese Buddhist cuisine has many true vegetarian dishes that contain no meat at all.

tofu, soy in general, MSG.., etc.. are not good for you, read wikipedia, they're a disaster

if they could replace their oils with olive oil and stop with the stupid soy, chinese food would end up as the best food period

will they ever switch, I doubt it, all of the restaurants are focused on pure profit, down to the fact that 99% of them will only give you 1 (1 ply) paper and you're supposed to wipe your mouth or something with it, never works

Someone should open a healthy version

[hugejazz]

The Chinese have been eating these foods for 5000 years and they stand to be the strongest "old" civilization in the world. If Chinese food was so unhealthy, the number of Chinese people on earth would not be anywhere near the 1.5 billion it is today.

These studies are completely biased; their claims are irrational and baseless, and these studies are probably done with a conclusion already in mind. I too can bash North American cuisine and call Americans fat by performing a study on based solely on KFC, MacDonald's and Pizza Hut, then I can claim that North American foods are unhealthy too!

Any study will be come skewed if you base it on data from the extreme ends of the distribution. As Chinese food goes, 'General Tao's chicken' pretty extreme when compared to a modest 'Vegetable Dumpling noodle soup' or congee.

[masterhapposai]

The Chinese have been eating these foods for 5000 years and they stand to be the strongest "old" civilization in the world. If Chinese food was so unhealthy, the number of Chinese people on earth would not be anywhere near the 1.5 billion it is today.

These studies are completely biased; their claims are irrational and baseless, and these studies are probably done with a conclusion already in mind. I too can bash North American cuisine and call Americans fat by performing a study on based solely on KFC, MacDonald's and Pizza Hut, then I can claim that North American foods are unhealthy too!

Any study will be come skewed if you base it on data from the extreme ends of the distribution. As Chinese food goes, 'General Tao's chicken' pretty extreme when compared to a modest 'Vegetable Dumpling noodle soup' or congee.

just because a society procreates more, and was pacifist+clean(europeans would count higher than india/china if not for their plagues +wars) doesn't mean the food is healthy

false logic

I've read cancer % and many other diseases are way higher in China as well. Not numbers, but %!

Bring it down to basics as well, if you eat terrible food but only 1 spoon of it a day, nothing is going to happen. This has resulted in smaller average heights in asians and very low muscular size/potential. There's very little protein in the diet in asia.

It all comes down to, what do you want to look like?

Wrestlers eat a dozen eggs a day + steaks + anything they can get their hands on, probably skipping out on all oils. This is the real "american diet". The oils at McD's and such were adopted from asian diets. Soy didn't exist to the rest of the world until recently, yet McD's & Burger King, etc.., serve SOY burgers with vegetable and SOY fats.

Think about it. McD's is asian as it can be, and I'm wondering where's my real cow meat and eggs.

[duckdown]

The Chinese have been eating these foods for 5000 years and they stand to be the strongest "old" civilization in the world. If Chinese food was so unhealthy, the number of Chinese people on earth would not be anywhere near the 1.5 billion it is today.

Hahahaha that is hilarious... Yes, because a race of people spit out more babies than a hamster, that means they're much healthier and eat better... Nice one

[hugejazz]

Hahahaha that is hilarious... Yes, because a race of people spit out more babies than a hamster, that means they're much healthier and eat better... Nice one

Now of all the Chinese people you see around, how many of them are fat? And of all the Caucasian people around you, how many are fat? Ratios speak for themselves. The rest of the world doesn't call North American's "fat" for nothing.

I am not denying the fact that some types of Chinese foods are fatty, but to say that (I am quoting from the article) "Study: Chinese food bad for you" is completely biased, and based on the single notion that "Chinese food is bad for you" don't you think that we would at least see ripple effects of obese, unhealthy Chinese people?

And please get your facts straight, China enforces a "One Child Policy", so your rebuttal is both incorrect and irrelevant to this topic. Also, I did not say that "they're much healthier and eat better", that was not the point of my post. My previous post was aimed at the bias of the study.

[hugejazz]

I've read cancer % and many other diseases are way higher in China as well. Not numbers, but %!


So are you saying that unhealthy Chinese foods are the cause of cancer?
If so, then cancer is cured.
Also, diseases are not usually caused by fatty foods. Now I'm not a certified M.D, but I think that bad hygiene and poor living conditions + the lack of proper medical infrastructures are the cause of diseases, not General Tao's chicken.


Bring it down to basics as well, if you eat terrible food but only 1 spoon of it a day, nothing is going to happen. This has resulted in smaller average heights in asians and very low muscular size/potential. There's very little protein in the diet in asia.


I think you need to stay on topic here... This article addresses the fact that Chinese foods are "bad for your waistline and blood pressure".


The oils at McD's and such were adopted from asian diets. Soy didn't exist to the rest of the world until recently, yet McD's & Burger King, etc.., serve SOY burgers with vegetable and SOY fats.

Think about it. McD's is asian as it can be, and I'm wondering where's my real cow meat and eggs.

You are trying to prove the article correct by claiming that MacDonald's is actually an Asian restaurant. I do not have an argument against that ingenious reasoning. You win!

[grapz]

most authentic, higher quality chinese restaurents , do not put as much sodium/ fat/ msg

[plucky duck]

I'll trade you my liver for some dim sum, any day of the week :lol:

[Amourek]

People seem to be under the impression that the food you find in Chinese restaurants is what the majority of chinese eat at home. This is completely false in my experience. Most chinese do not eat such food on a daily basis because for the most part, we know it's not good for you. You'll find the average home-cooked chinese meal is quite bland in comparison.

[UrbanPoet]

most authentic, higher quality chinese restaurents , do not put as much sodium/ fat/ msg

doesnt matter... The good stuff has lots of fat and bad stuff for you.
for example... a finely made dish of sea food chow mien will need oil to stir fry it.
Sometimes... its almost glossy, even @ a high class chinese resturant!

Go to high class dim sum, and wen you eat chicken feet, and the various other steamed goods... its still full of fatty meat.

[aidzhsiah]

I still remember that once I looked into the kitchen of a Chinese restaurant and I saw that they kept big industrial sized cans labelled "PORK LARD" in big bold letters on the side, sitting on a shelf directly next to the stove. Really, Chinese restaurants are not known for being healthy.

In fact, people routinely use oil by the ladle-ful. It's why when you see those towering flames in Chinese kitchens when they cook stuff :D

[Michie]

I always avoided Chinese food. When I eat at Chinese Resturants, I can feel my heart palpitating. Chinese foods are high in MSG. MSG is a neutrotransmitter. It causes headaches and brain ulcers.

[Havo]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian. Thank god for my fast metabolism!

(a funny thing is my iTunes switched to "Fitter Happier" by Radiohead when I opened this thread.)

Not just that but you prob eat more healthier at home. The meals prepared at my home have very low salt content and barely any if any MSG in it. restaurants add that stuff in to make the food taste better. I'll admit... food at home doesn't taste as good but it's really healthy.

[Supershyguy]

are they talking about Chinese food that us Chinese actually eat

or the fake Chinese food made for Canadian like Chicken balls and all that garbage?

[bly]

Avoid the food that is "Yeet Hay"

[anom]

Since when is soy considered to be evil?

just because a society procreates more, and was pacifist+clean(europeans would count higher than india/china if not for their plagues +wars) doesn't mean the food is healthy

false logic

I've read cancer % and many other diseases are way higher in China as well. Not numbers, but %!

Bring it down to basics as well, if you eat terrible food but only 1 spoon of it a day, nothing is going to happen. This has resulted in smaller average heights in asians and very low muscular size/potential. There's very little protein in the diet in asia.

It all comes down to, what do you want to look like?

Wrestlers eat a dozen eggs a day + steaks + anything they can get their hands on, probably skipping out on all oils. This is the real "american diet". The oils at McD's and such were adopted from asian diets. Soy didn't exist to the rest of the world until recently, yet McD's & Burger King, etc.., serve SOY burgers with vegetable and SOY fats.

Think about it. McD's is asian as it can be, and I'm wondering where's my real cow meat and eggs.

[rfdrfd]

I have never seen an overweight person that is 100% Asian.

LOL.... that is soooo true ! I mean, if you put all the Chinese people from China or HK, etc and compare them to all the Americans from USA. Measure every single darn one of them, I guarantee you, the Americans on average will be overwhelmingly overweight ! Heck, you won't even need to average

If you compare Canadian/American food vs. Chinese food, any intelligent person can tell you American food is less healthy. Even the portion sizes of Canadian foods is huge. Look at a rack of ribs, or burger.

Chinese people don't always go out you know. We cook ourselves at home and use little oil, or vegetable or sunflower oil, we don't add any MSG.

Chinese food is not just fried stuff. We have about 5 or 6 major types: deep fry, stir fry, broil, long boil (whatever that's called), steam.

And don't forgot the thousands of non-meat items (simulated meat) that monks eat. They are considered one of the healthiest beings on Earth !

The only other culture of food that might be more healthy then Chinese food is Italian food. Because of their olive oil. But then again, are Italian people known to be skinny or not ?

[rfdrfd]

doesnt matter... The good stuff has lots of fat and bad stuff for you.
for example... a finely made dish of sea food chow mien will need oil to stir fry it.
Sometimes... its almost glossy, even @ a high class chinese resturant!

Go to high class dim sum, and wen you eat chicken feet, and the various other steamed goods... its still full of fatty meat.


FYI: glossy is not necessarily oil. It is called "bo lay heen" - glass solution coating. From corn starch + some other stuff.

[el_diablo007]

I always avoided Chinese food. When I eat at Chinese Resturants, I can feel my heart palpitating. Chinese foods are high in MSG. MSG is a neutrotransmitter. It causes headaches and brain ulcers.

LOL causes headaches and brain ulcers

[501]

lol, this thread makes me hungry :o

[Dan8G]

To boot, MSG acts as excitotoxins and destroys neurons.

Still nummy though.

[Dr Butcher]

lol, this thread makes me hungry :o

Nice.... I craved a Big Mac after watching Supersize Me!

[UrbanPoet]

FYI: glossy is not necessarily oil. It is called "bo lay heen" - glass solution coating. From corn starch + some other stuff.

explain the dim sum then.......
Eating stuff like the popular Red Chicken Feet (aka Fong Chow excuse my chinglish spelling im not full chinese) is essentially just eating chicken skin and fat.

shew mai is just medium ground pork mixed with shrimp.

Cheng Fun is drenched in high sodium soy sauce.

Even so... Chow mien is made from highly processed carbs

[rosebud]

I don't care!


I love chinese food!

[gluhtzy]

yes it can be bad, especially MSG heavy hands!
but generally, it's value for money and . . .
balanced ingredients

[Homer88]

Well if you eat stuff like General Tao Chicken everyday....

[Michie]

Holy ****, i had Chinese today and it was so bad after. I drank 500ml of water. When i got home, I drank 3 more cups of water. Never again!

[prasuvana]

Not only chineese but Too much of any thing is bad.
So eat in moderate and keep healthy these are my few cents of advise.

[duckdown]

The grease practically comes out of your pores after eating Chinese food.

And please, don't give me the "Uhhh well that's not authentic Chinese food" crap because I eat the same "Chinese Food" 90% of Canada eats.. Which is the Chinese food from the Mandarin, or similar places.

Their cuisine is OK I guess, but it is NO shock that its unhealthy IMO, and I certainly would not eat it every week.

[Cafe_333]

study was not authentic chinese food - most people eat authentic at home and at real chinese restaurants. that study sounds to me like it was done at some fast food Holy Chow's or something. Notice they mentioned egg rolls, definately not an authentic restaurant. look at all the chinese girls who live off chinese food - most of them are skinny. they should correct the study and say chinese fast food is not healthy - well DUH... what fast food is? i take offense with them labelling chinese restaurants in general. :mad: