Many friends who often eat buffets have this idea: that it's easy to overeat at a buffet, which is not good for your health. Therefore, they don't have a good impression of buffets. In fact, buffets themselves are not the problem; the important thing is how you eat. The variety of food provided by buffets is quite rich, offering excellent ingredients for us to create healthy meals. Compared to regular table service, it's easier to achieve "dietary diversity." Therefore, as long as we pay attention to some details, we can definitely eat healthily at a buffet.
1. Abandon the "get your money's worth" mentality
Many people, when eating at a buffet, hold the "get your money's worth" mentality. Some even have the classic slogans: "Eat as much as you can!" or "Go in weak-legged with hunger, come out doubled over with fullness." This phenomenon is more common among young people with large appetites.
Doing so may seem like you're getting a good deal, but in reality, it brings many hidden risks to your body. On one hand, a sudden increase in food intake greatly burdens the digestive system, which can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, acute gastroenteritis, or pancreatitis. On the other hand, overeating leads to excessive intake of salt, oil, and calories, which is detrimental to your health.
2. Eat seafood in moderation
Some consumers at a buffet fix their eyes solely on the seafood area, barely glancing at the vegetables and fruits. While seafood is delicious, high in protein, and often priced a bit higher, eating too much of it is not good for you.
First, excessive protein intake can burden the kidneys. Second, with increasing environmental pollution, heavy metal contamination has become a common problem in seafood and fish. Furthermore, seafood is an excellent "culture medium" for various microorganisms to grow and multiply. Moreover, the food served at a buffet is left out in the open, and if the temperature is not controlled properly, it can easily be invaded by pathogenic bacteria. Sashimi, which many people love, is particularly prone to spoilage. Therefore, seafood should be eaten in moderation.
3. Have just a taste of high-calorie foods
Many people are very fond of Western foods like steak, pork chops, bacon, and New Orleans-style grilled chicken, and they tend to eat large portions of them. These foods share similar characteristics: they are high in fat, high in protein, and high in calories, but low in vitamins and minerals. They are difficult to digest and remain in the stomach for a long time. If they make up a large portion of one meal, they are very bad for digestive health and calorie control. Therefore, these foods should be had in small amounts.
4. Drink fewer sugary beverages
Usually, the calorie intake from a buffet meal exceeds the recommended amount. And if you consume large amounts of sugary drinks like cola, soda, or juice-based beverages before or after your meal, you will only add fuel to the fire for that meal's calorie count.
Furthermore, the sugary beverages provided at buffets are mostly carbonated drinks or juice drinks with very limited actual fruit juice content. Their nutritional value is much lower than what consumers expect. Therefore, it's best to drink fewer sugary beverages, except for fresh-squeezed juice.
5. At a buffet, have soup first
Buffets also offer a variety of soups. If you choose to have soup after your meal, it will bring extra calories on top of the food you've already eaten. Therefore, it is recommended to have soup first. This will help control your food intake and prevent you from overeating.
6. Eat less high-sugar, high-fat staple foods
Many people like to have some staple foods or desserts after they are full, such as fried rice, stir-fried rice noodles, noodles with soybean paste, or durian pastries. By this time, we have often already consumed excessive food and calories, so it's not advisable to eat more high-calorie staple foods. If you must have some staple food, it's recommended to choose something lighter. It would be even better to substitute with steamed tubers or a congee of mixed grains.