How come they do not get fat on Chinese food

You know, I was talking about this very thing with my husband the other day. In all three of the Chinese Restaurants we use, the girls who wait the tables, and the young men who wait tables, and the cooks that we see are all thin. I have, on occasion seen a portly adult, middle aged man, and any Caucasian workers are almost always fat. I have to assume that they first off, move so much they burn what they eat off, and secondly, they may not eat what they serve. I am sure they do not eat it in the quantities that the guests do. I agree, a large part of the customers are much heavier than they should be. I still have to believe it is lifestyle choices that cause the weight on us.

Hi, suspenseful. After I read your post, I think you are very funny.haha...I'm a Chinese and believe me there is no such "genetic makeup" in our body that prevents us from gaining weight on Chinese food. In fact, over 30% of Chinese are overweight, some of them are horribly fat. It is only the "genetic makeup" in our own body that impacts our weight. For me, I can eat whatever I want to eat without worrying about gaining weight.haha... By the way, Chinese food is really great, don't you think?

I dont know but seems like most of the food is veggies and noodles or rice.

I don't think it is genetics generally although Asians are smaller built compared to Europeans like someone have mentioned, but the type of food intake plays an important role. I'm a Chinese so I think I can chip in something for this discussion. Well before, processed food wasn't that popular but now that it has caught up, there are more obesity cases compared to years ago ( referring to Chinese here ). And maybe I reckon there's got a lot to do with eating time as well as typical dinner time for us long time ago was around 6pm or even earlier & supper is normally only served with light soupy stuff. But that has changed a lot. Now eating times become real late - about 8pm & supper is heavyOh & yeah, majority Indians have late dinner around 10pm at our place & they have all the lat & ghee which contributes to a big tummy

They eat rice and fish and don't indulge on fattening items. We live in Hawaii and besides the obvious cultural differences you can tell the American's from the Asian's. They eat at the Ramen noodle places while American's pack the Denny's and IHOP so they can get some comfort food. They also don't eat fried food like we do, all of their food is fresh, veggies, rice, fish. Eat that for about a year and you will loose weight because there is no fat in any of it. Plus, they don't drink soda, they drink water and tea.

I have heard people says this here "You won't get fat eating Chinese food." by Americans which is abosutely not true because there is lots of MSG in the Chinese food and it is one of the reason makes people fat. There is plenty of fat people in China but we just don't see it around as much here. But I don't understand as well that why Chinses people tend to be so much smaller.

Well it is interesting when you see a lot of Asian people like from China, Japan and the Phillipines that most of these people are skinny, and a lot of times you never hear them even mentioning things like Diabetes. I think it could be the way they are built, and their metabolism is a little different. I know chinese food is really good, but a lot of them are Bad for diabetics, and can put on the pds. for a lot of people for sure.

Suspenseful, Very good and common asked question. Hopefully my opinion and point of view will help you better understand the Chinese people. My opinion comes from studying the Chinese culture and history for 14 years. My ex-wife is from Fuzhou, China, so I lived in China for a year on and off, and in Taiwan for 2 and 1/2 years. I am going to put this as simple and educating as possible. Lifestyle is the main factor. Genetics does play a role, but not as big as we think. There are overweight and obese Chinese people. One of the main things I saw/see is that it all starts with Democracy and their options. Up until the early 1990's, China was still majority "Communist", not a lot of choices available to the "People" other than survival. At 18yrs old, all men MUST do(no option) at least 2 years in the Chinese army, so the schools fitness programs are structured accordingly. The Chinese are extremely hard workers, farming and producing all their own food and health products. Everything they eat and consume is fresh, not full of preservatives and fillers. Even what they drink and how they drink it factors into their health as well, they very seldom drink cold drinks and their teas all have healing components of some sort. Western and "Fast foods" were not available (except in the major cities) up until the late 1990's, and even with fast food they treat it as a luxury, not an everyday meal substitute like Americans. 90% of the food served in Chinese restaurants are "Westernized" recipes(toned down for our consumption), not true Chinese cuisine, basically, the Chinese DO NOT eat what they are serving, they still eat like they were in China. The Chinese are very disciplined & diligent in everything they do, from home, work, school, and recreation. We have all seen the pictures of 4 people on a scooter and cringed, but in all reality, a majority of the population doesn't have that luxury and walks or rides a bicycle to make ends meet, and those with wealth are frugal, still living by the same regimen. Wow, there are so many more factors I could write, keeping it simple is harder than I thought..lol.

The couple who own the restaurant probably don't eat like their customers do or in such great quantities. When people eat out, they want a lot of food for their dollar. That is why all you can eat places are so popular in the West. To give you an example of what a normal adult portion should be, let's go to McDonald's. We all know their menu. Or at least most people do. Did you know that the child's Happy Meal is actually an appropriate meal for an adult. Some of the Happy Meals are actually over the recommended calories for an adult meal. Also in restaurants, they tend to use a lot more fat than you would at home or they do at home. It makes it taste good and is more filling, there by cutting costs. You'd be surprised at the fat content of some of the meals in your local Chinese restaurant. If you are concerned ask about lower fat, lower salt versions.

Suspenseful- It's plain and simple, they don't eat processed foods. Yes, as one already pointed out there is a problem currently amongst Asians with obesity and the problem stems from the introduction of high carb, highly processed foods. There was an author not too long ago on a popular talk show who spoke about her issues with the differences between traditional Asian diet and her introduction to American/Western food when she attended college. It's not a matter of they have better genes then us, they still have the same sorts of issues. It is a matter that most Chinese households don't have the traditional Western diet. They also are more involved in activity if they are a traditional Asian household because that is the culture. I'm sorry to be one to burst the bubble but this has very little to do with genetics. It has more to do with what they are not eating. If you switched to a traditional Asian diet and exercise program I can bet you that you're blood sugar levels would go down, your blood pressure would not be an issue, and you'd have more energy. You might want to research Qi-Gong. It can prove very helpful. Namaste-Anora

Hi suspenseful, The reason Asian people tend not to gain weight as much as the Westerners do is a lot down to diet I think. In the past Asian people do not consume the milk, cream and dairy products that we do in the West. You will find it hard to see any shops in the East selling cream cakes and most of them do not like the taste of cheese. They tend to eat little and often rather than big meals. But, in this ever changing world, so life is changing over there, with the introduction of fast food (Mcdonalds, KFC, etc) and ice cream parlours the youth in Asia are begining to spread and gain weight. In fact in some Asian countries the fatter your children are the more affluent you are seen as. As Fat equalls expoensive fast food, etc equalls money. So, the rich are really begining to fatten their kids. Such a shame!

hi, I think you are right that there is a genetic make up that dictates not just Chinese but most Asians in general from gaining wait. It's not just eating Chinese foods, maybe you just associated it because they own the restaurant, you see people from a hotter region do not need to build up much body fat as compared to people from colder countries like Europeans, so your correct it has something to do with genetics.

I am a chinese.I think European people often fatter than Asian people.And I think many western food's calories are higher than Asian food.Western people will put cheese,butter,cream,sugar in their food.Maybe you saw the chinese people in the restaurant are thin.I think they won't usually eat out.Most time they maybe cook themselves at home.When we cook at home,we just put a little oil,some salt in the food.Our flavoring include salt,soy sauce,vinegar ,etc.They are healty. In China ,there are many western fast food shop and Cafe in our country,such as KFC,McDonald's,Costa,Starbucks,etc.But the quantity in Asia are smaller than in Europe.The hamburger is smaller,the drink is smaller,the crips is smaller...So the calorie also decrease.

Yeah,I found that most Chinese are not fat.Maybe because of gene.Our food are less calories,so we hardly gain weight.

Hi suspenseful,he he i'm an asian ,u know what i used be so slim in my schooling but once i came to my college i got used to western food, from me even my dad got habituated to that food, u know now my dad has a big belly and i'm having a chota pack (a smaller one but still 'll be focussed wen i wear t-shirts), but there's no genetic make up kind of thing in any1's body.

I agree with you, all those who own and work in Chinese restaurantsd always seem to be slim! i have to say that I love takeaway food although we dont have it too often. takeaway food is delicious because you have not had to cook it yourself. the staff in the restaurants work hard and they are forever running about so that is how they manage to remain so slim.

well, my family is obese! My husband has chinese blood.I guess it depends on the moderation of food intake

Hi,I'm a Chinese,and I think there isn't the genetic makeup in Chinese,because many of my classmates are fat and big belly.But there is a genetic makeup in someone's family that prevents them from gaining weight on all of the food,and usually they have a stomach disorder.Then I will recommend some Chinese food which are delicious but low-fat.1\"Ma Po Tofu",it means Tofu in spicy meat sauce.If you like eating spicy food,it's a good choice.2\"JaJangMyun",it's a kind of noodle,and noodle is low-fat.3\"scramble egg with tomato".If you want to know more about Chinese food,you can contact with me.