Study: Chinese Restaurant Food Unhealthy

CBNNews.com

March 22, 2007

CBNNews.com -- A consumer group has found that typical Chinese restaurant food is not as healthy as we once thought.

It's loaded with excess sodium, saturated fat and lots of calories - yes, even the vegetables.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, which did a report released Tuesday, said that a plate of General Tso's chicken, a staple Chinese restaurant dish, is loaded with about 40 percent more sodium and more than half the calories that the average adult needs daily.

Battered fried chicken with vegetables came in at a whopping 1,300 calories, with 3,200 milligrams of sodium and 11 grams of saturated fat. Included in that total are the egg rolls, at 200 calories and 400 milligrams of sodium.

But that doesn't include the rice, at 200 calories per cup.

"I don't want to put all the blame on Chinese food," said Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director for the Center.

"Across the board, American restaurants need to cut back on calories and salt, and in the meantime, people should think of each meal as not one, but two -- and bring home half for tomorrow," Liebman advised.

The average adult needs around 2,000 calories a day and 2,300 milligrams of salt, which is about one teaspoon of salt, according to government guidelines. Women overall require fewer calories than men.

Sheila Weiss, director of nutrition policy at the National Restaurant Association, said that restaurants around the country were already trying to offer healthier menu options for their customers.

Chinese restaurants typically offer other choices for customers looking to steer clear of fried foods and heavy sauces, she said.

"Restaurants have a responsibility to provide options and they do," said Weiss, but "customers also have a responsibility to understand their own dietary needs and know how to make special requests."

CSPI's Liebman said, though, that overall, Italian and Mexican restaurants are worse for your health, because their food is higher in saturated fat, which can increase the risk of heart disease.

And although Chinese restaurant food may be bad for your waistline and blood pressure with its high sodium content - it does offer vegetable-rich dishes and the kind of fat that's not bad for the heart.

Just keep in mind that a plate of stir-fried greens has 900 calories and 2,200 milligrams of sodium. And eggplant in garlic sauce has 1,000 calories and 2,000 milligrams of sodium.

"We were shocked. We assumed the vegetables were all low in calories," Liebman said.

While the group says there is no safe harbor from sodium on the Chinese restaurant menu, it offers several tips for making a meal healthier:

- Look for dishes that feature vegetables rather than meat or noodles. Ask for extra broccoli, snow peas or other veggies.

- Avoid deep-fried meat, seafood or tofu. Order it stir-fried or braised.

- Hold the sauce, and eat with a fork or chopsticks to leave more sauce behind.

- Avoid extra salt by steering clear of, or going easy, on the duck sauce, hot mustard, hoisin sauce and soy sauce.

- Share your meal or take half home for later.

- Ask for brown rice instead of white rice.

And don't be discouraged if your local Chinese restaurant doesn't have brown rice. Continue to ask for it -- If they get enough requests, they will respond to the demand.

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