Aussie Thai Food Tops Pizza As Fattiest Takeaway

[george]

Thai tops pizza as fattiest takeaway

AUSTRALIA: -- IT'S cheap and tasty but full of fat: Pad Thai has beaten pizza to be rated one of our unhealthiest takeaway dishes.

Australians spend on average 10 per cent of their food budget on takeaway dishes that are mostly too high in kilojoules and drowning in fat and salt.

A survey by consumer group Choice compared popular Thai, Chinese, Italian and Indian dishes with pizzas, chicken and fish and chips, and found some Asian specialties were laden with nasties.

Beef in black bean sauce with a serve of boiled rice, and aloo matar (potato and pea curry) were among the better options, while butter chicken contained 12g of fat per 100g, 5.1g of them saturated.

Thai fish cakes had excessive amounts of salt, while Pad Thai contained 11.3g of fat per 100g and beef penang contained 8.8g, including 6.1g of saturated fat.

Pasta napolitana was the healthiest Italian dish, while chicken cacciatore was among the worst.

KFC chicken and chips had more than double the fat of Nando's and more than triple the saturated fat.

Supreme pizzas from both Dominos and Pizza Hut were worse than vegetarian and Hawaiian toppings, but contained less fat per 100g than Chinese omelette with chicken, Pad Thai, palak paneer (spinach and cheese curry) and butter chicken, and the same amount of fat as Thai basil chicken.

"Pad Thai, which is probably one of Australia's favourite takeaway meals, tops the list of all the Thai dishes both because of the fat content - it's a noodle dish so it's energy dense - and also the sodium involved," Choice spokeswoman Elise Davidson said.

"Chinese was such a healthy option, it came out better than most of the other cuisines in terms of overall fat energy and salt content."

Takeaway lovers should steer clear of coconut milk and creamy sauces, fried rice and satay dishes at Thai and Chinese, and order stir-fries and braised meat instead.

At Indian restaurants, tandoori chicken and dhaals are healthier meals.

If the temptation to indulge is too strong, you can exercise your fast food meal away.

But, be warned: It will take plenty of effort.

Be prepared to do up to 161 minutes of hard cycling to work off a lamb korma, 172 minutes to burn off a sweet and sour pork, and an astonishing 192 minutes to work off a supreme pizza.

-- news.com.au 2009-06-14

[fred2007]

I posted this yesterday George and like you I did not get any response either I guess every body thinks Thai food is healthy and good for you

[Ga-gai]

Maybe most of the foreigners are living in the proximity of big cities and tourist places and therefore mostly eat the same food as they did back home.

Anyway... It's the carbon hydrates everyone should watch out for. Carbon hydrates is basically sugar. I try the most to avoid Thai dishes with sugar and oil. I avoid white polished Jasmin rice and use brown rice instead when doing food at home. Also focus on boiled meat or canned Tuna in water together with the brown rice. Keep the stomach working all the time by eating minor amount of food more often. Instead of eating 3 heavy meals a day (or even just one big only), I spread it out to 5-6 smaller simple meals during the day to keep the stomach working and make the organs to realize that there is no need to store energy as fat because there's a supply from the frequent meals.

I also do 1½ hours a day on gym from Monday to Friday. In the weekend I'll just relax with a couple of beers. At the gym I do both step and ski machine for half an hour. Then bench press and handles for 1 hour. No bodybuilding. No heavy stuff. Just normal healthy exercises that feels good. A rice dish about 1 hour before the gym. Fruits like banana or apples immediately after the pass. No food after 8.00 pm (I usually go to bed 12:00-01:00 am)

I've lost 10 kg in 5 months. Everything feels lighter nowadays. From waking up in the morning (9:00-10:00 am), walking, shopping to walking the stairs at home. Starting feel as good as I did 15 years ago (before married *haha*). Also quit smoking 3 years ago!

So guys... If you take care of your body, your body takes care of you!

Edited June 16, 2009 by Ga-gai

[H2oDunc]

If Thai food is so fatty and no good for you why are there not millions of very obese Thais wandering about ? Obese Thais are in the minority here and I have found the food to be low on fat. Quick fried and with lean meat and seafood. Now an extra large mixed donna kebab, large fries with extra chillies and lots of chilli sauce is fatty

[Ga-gai]

Well... They usually get fatter when they get older, when the balance in their body changes...

Thais eat almost constantly. Just what I mentioned above about spreading out smaller meals instead of having a few big ones. It really works! If you eat just a few heavy big meals with Thai food every day, you will get fat for sure. But not with the more constant smaller ones. Regarding obesity and Thais, that's a thing that will be more common when they adopt to western food and how it is eaten. Some of the wealthier Thai families that's spoiling their kids with more western food (just to show their status and income) usually got fat kids.

Edited June 16, 2009 by Ga-gai

[Tywais]

If Thai food is so fatty and no good for you why are there not millions of very obese Thais wandering about ?

I see a lot more roly poly kids now then I did 40 years ago.

"The fact that Thai men and women have developed significantly bigger chests, waists and bottoms, means the shape of the average Thai has also changed. In particular, Dr. Chularat noted, the women have become more tubular and have less of the traditional hourglass shape."

-- TNA Feb 2009

Survey

[suegha]

What must they be adding to the Pad Thai to make it so unhealthy???

Thai food, when properly prepared, is very healthy. However, so many recipes add oil, sugar and salt which are not needed for the recipe at all.

[Ga-gai]

What must they be adding to the Pad Thai to make it so unhealthy???

Thai food, when properly prepared, is very healthy. However, so many recipes add oil, sugar and salt which are not needed for the recipe at all.

I can agree on Pad Thai is the number one unhealthy food here. It contains lots of oil, lots of sugar (added during cooking), lots of carbon hydrates from the noodles, unhealthy ingredients from the black sauce, etc. My wife told me that Pad Thai is not actually something that you have for dinner. More like something between fast food to stop sudden hunger and a desert (or snacks).

[getgoin]

It's the palm oil.

[Goinghomesoon]

I subscribe to Choice magazine so I got the full article. They only tested a small range of Thai food, mostly those available in every "Thai" restaurant in Australia: green chicken curry, chicken & basil, chicken & ginger, fish cakes, beef panang and pad thai. Personally in takeaways in Aust I try to avoid most of those!

[moo9]

I posted this yesterday George and like you I did not get any response either I guess every body thinks Thai food is healthy and good for you

It has been healthy in former times, but today it is too sweet, too fat (coconut milk from instead of fresh one), too much MSG etc.

If you prepare traditional Thai dishes at home and prepare them in the original way, those are yummy and healthier!

[cat5]

^ However you cook them, noodles are never going to be a really healthy option. But like anything else, eaten once in a while they won't harm you.

[billd766]

I have just spent a year working in New Zealand and I gained nearly 10kg.

I have been back almost a month now and I have lost 7kg without dieting but eating less and better at my wife place which surprise surprise sells noodle as well as other Thai food all freshly cooked.

In fact she has normally sold out her noodles in 3 hours most days.

Sorry about that but I actually like her cooking very much which is one reason that I married her.

[getgoin]

It is a common misconception that Thai food is healthy because of the vegetables used. Thai food just like any other food can be healthy or unhealthy depending on how it is prepared and the ingredients used.

I have pointed this out on numerous occasions that palm oil is more saturated than beef fat. Thus, to draw a similarity, it is healthier to eat a hamburger without bun and with lettuce, tomato, onion and pickle than it is to eat Thai food prepared with palm oil. If you eat the rice then eat the bun.

There is no doubt in my mind that as Thai society sees its children grow obese and start to die of heart disease that there will be a trend to cook healthier. Unfortunately, most of the really cheap food found at the food courts and stalls will probably remain unhealthy. Bad news for those cruising the food courts for lunch.

[DonWilson]

Watch out! Thai food is a health risk. Too much salt, saturated oil (palm oil), sugar and that carbohydrate of carbohydrates white rice.

Thailand has the highest rate of heart disease and diabetes of all of southeast asia.

In small doses, enjoy yourself. But if you are an expat then make some adjustments. Less salt (no fish sause), use olive oil, no sugar and if you do like white rice then eat it with lots of veges. (or use brown rice)

Enjoy your stay

[spysee]

Watch out! Thai food is a health risk. Too much salt, saturated oil (palm oil), sugar and that carbohydrate of carbohydrates white rice.

Thailand has the highest rate of heart disease and diabetes of all of southeast asia.

In small doses, enjoy yourself. But if you are an expat then make some adjustments. Less salt (no fish sause), use olive oil, no sugar and if you do like white rice then eat it with lots of veges. (or use brown rice)

Enjoy your stay

Your a funny one, especially trying to point out being the highest in heart disease and diabetes of all of southeast asia

It wouldnt be hard to top that list. I wonder the country who is 2nd would rank the world?

[Datsun240Z]

Watch out! Thai food is a health risk. Too much salt, saturated oil (palm oil), sugar and that carbohydrate of carbohydrates white rice.

Thailand has the highest rate of heart disease and diabetes of all of southeast asia.

In small doses, enjoy yourself. But if you are an expat then make some adjustments. Less salt (no fish sause), use olive oil, no sugar and if you do like white rice then eat it with lots of veges. (or use brown rice)

Enjoy your stay

Your a funny one, especially trying to point out being the highest in heart disease and diabetes of all of southeast asia

It wouldnt be hard to top that list. I wonder the country who is 2nd would rank the world?

U.S.A ?

[cobra]

I knew it !, it's not a gland thing it's the Thai food, Doe !

[sabaijai]

Note: They surveyed phat thai in Oz, not phat thai in Thailand.