Facts about Chinese Food

You have friends over and you decide to order Chinese as a healthy alternative to pizza or cheeseburgers. Big mistake!

 Chinese food is notorious for sodium because of the added MSG. That's why you're so thirsty after leaving a Chinese restaurant.  The food is also cooked with  high amounts of fat or lard.

The truth of the matter is:

• An order of House Lo Mein has the same amount of salt as a whole cheese pizza
   
• An order of King Pao Chicken has as much fat as four quarter pound cheeseburgers.
   
• An order of Moo Shu Pork has more than twice the cholesterol of a fast food breakfast sandwich

Redeeming Feature:

On the plus side, the saturated fat levels of Chinese foods are typically lower than many western dishes. 

Three Steps to Healthy Chinese Food:

So now that you know that Chinese is not as healthy as you thought it would be, here are a few tips for cutting down on the fat so you can enjoying some on occasion.

1.    Rice is the biggest tip for healthy Eastern food.  Add 2 cups of plain rice to each entree and divide it up.

2.    Add a portion of steamed vegetables to your entree and you will markedly cut down the fat per serving.

3.     Leave the sauce behind.  Eat your Chinese dish with a fork or chopsticks, lifting the food up and out of the sauce.  Eat your rice from a separate rice dish instead of adding it to entrees so it doesn't soak up the fatty sauces.

4.    The best choices for lower fat and sodium in Chinese restaurants are stir fried dishes with shrimp or vegetables.