CHINESE FOOD diet.

GODfidence
GODfidence Posts: 249 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Not diet as in weight loss,and not Chinese food as in orange chicken,egg rolls,and
Ridiculous amounts of time spent at the buffet.I mean the typical Chinese diet, they don't count
Calories yet they don't even know the word obese. They eat rice with OCCASSIONAL
Meat added for flavor instead of meat being the main dish the vegetables are. 3 or 4
Side dishes of veggies and fruit and they eat until they are full. They don't leave the table
Until they are full! They obviously have better health than americans and they definitely look younger.
I can never figure out how old they are, that's awesome.
I feel like the main reason we people gain weight is from snacking. tIt's hard to eat 6-8 hundred
Calories at each meal, three times per day and honestly say you're not full. Eating until you're
Full and skipping snacks seems legit because counting calories is kinda annoying.
Thoughts?
Input?

Replies

  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
    I don't think your average Chinese person is sitting down and scarfing down buckets of rice. Its mostly veggies, some fruit, a bit of rice and meat. They eat less than us in general - in calories and by volume. They also don't cook with added sugar the way Chinese restaurants in the US do.
  • Renaywi124
    Renaywi124 Posts: 4
    You make a great point as far as eating healthy! However I would definitely make sure if I were following this style of eating to have small small bowls! Sometimes too much of a good thing can be bad for you! Also I think having a lot of variety would make all of the difference.
  • LdByron10
    LdByron10 Posts: 4 Member
    Also remember in the city so many people that walking or biking is the major transportation, and in the rural community still mostly manual labor. Our desk jobs work against us :happy:
  • vtmoon
    vtmoon Posts: 3,436 Member
    They also work harder than us, walk a lot, bike a lot. Also, not as much processed food, if you compare Chinese people in cities where junk food and western habits are more common you will see that they are getting bigger like we did when we went down that path. Not sure if you have been to China or not but poverty plays a role to over there, fast food there tend to be for the middle class or rich rather than the poor as it is the case in the US.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Allllllllll of the above are true.

    To truly follow a Chinese diet you'd also have to ditch the car for a bike
  • dimsumkitty
    dimsumkitty Posts: 120 Member
    The Chinese diet is your standard high carb, medium protein, low fat, low sugar diet. The low sugar part is key: they eat rice with every meal (even breakfast), but in the traditional Chinese diet you have sweets maybe twice a year, and fruit only when it's in season, i.e. 3 months in the year, and even then it's not an every day thing. In everyday food there is absolutely no sugar.

    Also they have lots of clear soups and that fills you up without containing carbs or fat.
  • GODfidence
    GODfidence Posts: 249 Member
    Allllllllll of the above are true.

    To truly follow a Chinese diet you'd also have to ditch the car for a bike

    I walk where I want to go!
    But I'm not talking about weight loss in general, more about health
    And overall less obsessiveness over food.
    They eat until they're full. And I read one article that says they eat more calories
    Than Americans. I mean, they might be starting to get fatter but it's McDonalds and
    Taco bells fault for invading their territory.
  • Sqeekyjojo
    Sqeekyjojo Posts: 704 Member
    Malnutrition and poverty means people are thinner. And it means they eat stuff westerners wouldn't.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Allllllllll of the above are true.

    To truly follow a Chinese diet you'd also have to ditch the car for a bike

    I walk where I want to go!
    But I'm not talking about weight loss in general, more about health
    And overall less obsessiveness over food.
    They eat until they're full. And I read one article that says they eat more calories
    Than Americans. I mean, they might be starting to get fatter but it's McDonalds and
    Taco bells fault for invading their territory.

    they may eat more calories, but they do get an awful lot more exercise. if you're not worried about that aspect, go for it - although I really do think there are better cultures (japanese for instance) to emulate in terms of food.

    but you are absolutely right conceptually.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Malnutrition and poverty means people are thinner. And it means they eat stuff westerners wouldn't.

    and malnutrition and poverty in America makes people fatter.

    (also, I've got chicken hearts and feet in my fridge right now)
  • GODfidence
    GODfidence Posts: 249 Member
    Malnutrition and poverty means people are thinner. And it means they eat stuff westerners wouldn't.

    If they are so malnourished why do they live longer?
    Have a way lower,percentage of heart disease and cancer?
    I would say they have it right. They don't count calories(they eat for
    Fuel body nourishment,and health) .
    Idk what rice porrige is,sounds gross, but it's most likely better than cereal
    Or eggs?
    Idk. I'm thinking too hard.
  • GODfidence
    GODfidence Posts: 249 Member
    Malnutrition and poverty means people are thinner. And it means they eat stuff westerners wouldn't.

    and malnutrition and poverty in America makes people fatter.

    (also, I've got chicken hearts and feet in my fridge right now)

    Please tell me those hearts and feet are dipped in chocolate and mixed in a pint
    Of Ben and jerrys.
  • Davina_JH
    Davina_JH Posts: 473 Member

    (also, I've got chicken hearts and feet in my fridge right now)

    :love:
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member


    (also, I've got chicken hearts and feet in my fridge right now)

    I think you'll find they're phoenix feet.
  • Mimoki
    Mimoki Posts: 115 Member
    Rice congee (porridge) and thousand year old egg... yum yum and triple yum!
  • Sqeekyjojo
    Sqeekyjojo Posts: 704 Member
    I was thinking more of stuff like bugs, caterpillars, dogs, more than the standard pig uterus, penis and suchlike you get in your average Chinese supermarket.

    The life expectancy of someone in an affluent area is far beyond that of those in poorer places. Could the smaller average height have evolved as a direct result of generation after generation not having enough food to support taller people?

    Smoking is common, blood pressure and strokes are an issue, dental health is almost non existent, pollution is horrendous, it's the foci of diseases such as influenza, SARS and so on. Plus, the poverty and suffering of the population from before WWII is going to have an effect upon the people now. For a start, as soon as they are experiencing greater affluence, they increase consumption of meat and processed foods. And are becoming fatter.


    The principle of eating moderately applies everywhere. If you follow the habits of okinawan or Japanese people instead, as they have better longevity, the consistently appearing things are vast numbers of vegetables, fish, rice, exercise and eating lower calories. Lower than recommended here. But maybe the last is because they're smaller by average.



    If someone wants to be small like the 'average' Chinese person (which average? Han? Or any of the other peoples that aren't mentioned but form huge proportions of the nation?), then perhaps they should remember that not only are they not an average Chinese person, but they don't live in the same environment or economy as the average Chinese person.
  • dbkrantz
    dbkrantz Posts: 138
    I lived in Singapore for a while, so it's not really Chinese but still kind of is.

    Actually, rice is a huge staple in their diet. It's not occasional it's everyday. You have rice then a side of meat and vegetables.

    They are not obese because they walk around and are generally quite active. They are not obese because they cook from scratch.
  • pinkupooh
    pinkupooh Posts: 155
    Not diet as in weight loss,and not Chinese food as in orange chicken,egg rolls,and
    Ridiculous amounts of time spent at the buffet.I mean the typical Chinese diet, they don't count
    Calories yet they don't even know the word obese. They eat rice with OCCASSIONAL
    Meat added for flavor instead of meat being the main dish the vegetables are. 3 or 4
    Side dishes of veggies and fruit and they eat until they are full. They don't leave the table
    Until they are full! They obviously have better health than americans and they definitely look younger.
    I can never figure out how old they are, that's awesome.
    I feel like the main reason we people gain weight is from snacking. tIt's hard to eat 6-8 hundred
    Calories at each meal, three times per day and honestly say you're not full. Eating until you're
    Full and skipping snacks seems legit because counting calories is kinda annoying.
    Thoughts?
    Input?

    Chinese folks have different genes. Have you seen mixed Chinese people born and brought up in US? They do gain weight just like normal Americans. However, I do agree with you that the chinese food in US is more for US folks, actual food in China is much healthier and more steamed veggies and fresh fruites....:)
  • Woomytron
    Woomytron Posts: 253 Member
    They are also big into exercise. They walk/bike everywhere. Also public parks have workout machines for people to use when on breaks or whenever.

    You can eat like them but if you don't change your lifestyle to mimic what they do then it wont work.
  • stephelan
    stephelan Posts: 81
    They also eat MUCH MUCH slower. I didn't know how long I could sit there waiting for someone to be done until I saw my Chinese friend eat a Starburst in three bites.

    Also, I've stayed for prolonged periods of time in Japan and while that's not China, I DID notice that this diet made me feel very drained. A TON of carbs and vegetables and very little protein. (I'm used to having one trillion grams of protein a day.)
  • dimsumkitty
    dimsumkitty Posts: 120 Member
    Also, I've stayed for prolonged periods of time in Japan and while that's not China, I DID notice that this diet made me feel very drained. A TON of carbs and vegetables and very little protein. (I'm used to having one trillion grams of protein a day.)

    I think genetics is a factor as well. Most Chinese people I know feel absolutely starved on high protein, low carb diets.
  • splashblob
    splashblob Posts: 249 Member
    I am in Southeast Asia and people here are saying that too. Many of them say that if they don't have rice (presumably white since it is what most of them eat) include in each meal, it's not filling for them. Yet here in the west, it's the opposite...

    :\
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    Not diet as in weight loss,and not Chinese food as in orange chicken,egg rolls,and
    Ridiculous amounts of time spent at the buffet.I mean the typical Chinese diet, they don't count
    Calories yet they don't even know the word obese. They eat rice with OCCASSIONAL
    Meat added for flavor instead of meat being the main dish the vegetables are. 3 or 4
    Side dishes of veggies and fruit and they eat until they are full. They don't leave the table
    Until they are full! They obviously have better health than americans and they definitely look younger.
    I can never figure out how old they are, that's awesome.
    I feel like the main reason we people gain weight is from snacking. tIt's hard to eat 6-8 hundred
    Calories at each meal, three times per day and honestly say you're not full. Eating until you're
    Full and skipping snacks seems legit because counting calories is kinda annoying.
    Thoughts?
    Input?

    Chinese folks have different genes. Have you seen mixed Chinese people born and brought up in US? They do gain weight just like normal Americans. However, I do agree with you that the chinese food in US is more for US folks, actual food in China is much healthier and more steamed veggies and fresh fruites....:)

    I'm sorry, what now? there are plenty of full-blooded Asian people in America who are obese. It's not entirely genetics, it's lifestyle and environmental factors.

    HOWEVER I will say that Indian, Filipino, and other east asian peoples ARE often genetically skinny, but genetics can be trumped by what you eat and how you eat it.
  • Mimoki
    Mimoki Posts: 115 Member
    I am in Southeast Asia and people here are saying that too. Many of them say that if they don't have rice (presumably white since it is what most of them eat) include in each meal, it's not filling for them. Yet here in the west, it's the opposite...

    :\

    true that. If you haven't had rice you haven't really eaten.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
    I was thinking more of stuff like bugs, caterpillars, dogs, more than the standard pig uterus, penis and suchlike you get in your average Chinese supermarket.

    haha fair enough... chicken feet and hearts is probably the limit of my adventurousness for now... but I like to think that I'm willing to try anything, so maybe some day
    The life expectancy of someone in an affluent area is far beyond that of those in poorer places. Could the smaller average height have evolved as a direct result of generation after generation not having enough food to support taller people?

    Smoking is common, blood pressure and strokes are an issue, dental health is almost non existent, pollution is horrendous, it's the foci of diseases such as influenza, SARS and so on. Plus, the poverty and suffering of the population from before WWII is going to have an effect upon the people now. For a start, as soon as they are experiencing greater affluence, they increase consumption of meat and processed foods. And are becoming fatter.


    The principle of eating moderately applies everywhere. If you follow the habits of okinawan or Japanese people instead, as they have better longevity, the consistently appearing things are vast numbers of vegetables, fish, rice, exercise and eating lower calories. Lower than recommended here. But maybe the last is because they're smaller by average.



    If someone wants to be small like the 'average' Chinese person (which average? Han? Or any of the other peoples that aren't mentioned but form huge proportions of the nation?), then perhaps they should remember that not only are they not an average Chinese person, but they don't live in the same environment or economy as the average Chinese person.

    Totally agree with all your points - especially the size of the people. The American ideal of being "ripped" is counter-productive in terms of life expectancy. This carries over from the BMI thread. the actual key to living a long time is being trim, fit and active, but NOT bulked up and ripped. NOT an elite athlete. But also NOT being obese and sedentary. As with all things - moderation is the ideal in terms of longevity. Now if you've got other goals, that's something different.
  • NRSPAM
    NRSPAM Posts: 961 Member
    I don't think the problem is snacking. I think it's what you're snacking on. If you snack on some carrots, or a piece of fruit, that's not going to make you fat. It will keep you from feeling like you're starving by the time you get to your next meal, and keep you from overeating.

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