Is Chinese food healthy? It depends on where you get it. Usually American Chinese food are generally unhealthy. I would not use Panda Express to lose weight. But really it depends on what type of food you eat. Which is pretty much true with any type of food. If you go to a Chinese restaurant and just order food filled with rice and egg rolls, it would not surprise me if you gain weight. However, if you start ordering vegetables like Gai Lan or Steamed Fish, the affect on your body should be positive.

An Issue with MSG

I think a lot of the negative connotation that is associated with Chinese food is due to MSG. Because of the Chinese Restaurant Syndrome, people have associated Chinese Food as being unhealthy. It will cause headache and dehydration. The truth is that it was a prank played by a person claiming to be a doctor. He submitted a letter to a Scientific journal and it got the unwarranted attention. From there on, Chinese food was always seen as a lower class food.

Chinese Fast Food Issues

It certainly did not help that a lot of the “Chinese Food” that most american people know of is those cheap fast food restaurant. Those type of food are mainly built to be cheap and more palatable to the american taste. If you go to a Chinese restaurant with real Chinese food, you will be surprised by how different the food is. Real Chinese food is changes based on the region you are in China. Southern China has a lot of Stir Fry and Dim Sum. Places like Si Chuan have very spicy food and northern Chinese food has a lot of dumpling.

Instead of going to a place like Panda Express, I recommend that you visit a area with a large Chinese community. Those are the places where Chinese people live and eat. You will get the authentic Chinese food there. I recommend that you avoid “Chinatown” those are usually catered for tourist. For example, the real good food in Los Angeles is actually in Alhambra, San Gabriel and Temple City. The Los Angeles Chinatown restaurant are mostly run for tourist.

Carbs, Fat and Keto

Yes, it is true that Chinese food is filled with Fat and Carbs. When the staple of their dish is their rice, you can expect a lot of it. However, you should realize that rice is just used a starch. Much like bread, it is used to balance the other food. If you cut the amount of rice or noodles in your Chinese food intake, it will be a lot better for Keto.

Chinese food do use a lot of fat when cooking. Deep frying is a common technique for almost all dish. However, fat actually keeps you full longer. In the long run, you will eat less. If you are still worried about the fat content, you can try to eat more vegetables. There are a lot of stir fry vegetable dishes available. Steamed fish is another great alternative. They steam it in soy sauce and ginger and they always make it fresh.

So Is Chinese Food Healthy?

I would say that its as healthy as any other food. It is what you make of it. Eat unhealthy and it will become unhealthy. Eat lean food like fish and vegetables, you will be healthy. That is not to say you can eat the “Unhealthy Food” but rather you should eat it with moderation.

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