Life has become rich and colorful, yet the kitchen grows increasingly "lonely." Many young couples are unwilling to be tied down by the kitchen. Due to work demands, they often have to socialize and dine out, finding themselves at the mercy of business banquets, or they long-termly "enjoy" monotonous fast food. Especially during the hot season, the kitchen is all but forgotten. While this lifestyle may seem carefree and unrestrained, it can easily lead to nutritional imbalances.
CASE 1 Lu Lu is a public relations manager at a foreign enterprise. Due to work needs, she often has to invite clients to dine out. The sumptuous banquets have made Lu Lu's stomach quite uncomfortable lately. A hospital check-up revealed she has a stomach ulcer. Expert advice:
—The banquets in restaurants and hotels may appear abundant and delicious, but in reality, they are neither nutritious nor safe. Firstly, restaurant dishes are often greasy and heavily seasoned, and it's common to skip staple foods, placing a heavy burden on the digestive system. Secondly, most restaurant dishes undergo a "deep-frying" process. The oil is heated multiple times, producing toxic, aging-promoting substances that are also very irritating to the stomach.
Furthermore, frequent drinking and being mentally tense and unable to focus on the meal at the table are also major factors that harm the stomach.
Lu Lu needs to minimize the number of banquets she attends, avoid tobacco and alcohol, and cook more light, easily digestible foods at home, such as congee, noodles, and stewed dishes. She should avoid fried, grilled, greasy foods, as well as overly spicy, salty, or acidic foods. When dining out, she should try to order light dishes for herself, such as clear stews, soups, cold dishes, or stir-fried vegetables. She should also remember to have some plain rice with the meal, chewing slowly to ease the irritation from the dishes on her stomach. Additionally, it's important to maintain a pleasant mood during meals and not be too tense.
CASE 2 Mei Mei never learned to do housework. After getting married, neither she nor her husband was willing to cook, and with their busy jobs, they often ate out. However, two years later, she found that her husband had developed a prominent belly, and her own figure was no longer slim. Expert opinion:
—Nutritionally, restaurant meals tend to have fewer vegetables and an excess of fish, meat, and seafood. The cooking uses far more oil than home cooking, and it's common to order drinks and alcohol before the meal, followed by soup and dessert afterwards. Without sufficient physical activity, weight gain is almost inevitable. For women, significant fluctuations in body weight most easily lead to skin aging. Abdominal obesity in men can also lay early groundwork for fatty liver, coronary heart disease, and diabetes.
The advice for Mei Mei and her husband is to adjust their lifestyle. For half of the week's evenings, they should cook congee at home, adding beautifying and nutritious ingredients like beans, coarse grains, red dates, and lilies. They can also prepare simple cold dishes or stewed vegetables, paired with low-fat foods like pre-cooked meats, soy products, and pickles purchased from outside, allowing the two to enjoy a relaxed meal. If they have to work late, they should avoid snacking randomly. Instead, they can have a cup of yogurt, some fruit, or prepare some lotus root powder or almond milk. They should absolutely avoid greasy foods and control their intake of sweet drinks.
CASE 3 Tong Tong grew up in a divorced family and has often eaten out or bought semi-prepared meals to cook at home for many years. She has always felt that her pores are large, her skin is dull, she lacks energy, gets tired easily, and has a poor appetite with no interest in food. Expert advice:
—Restaurant food is overly seasoned, overstimulating the taste buds. An occasional taste might be delicious, but frequent dining out leads to taste fatigue, causing a loss of appetite. At the same time, the nutritional value of restaurant food is significantly diminished, the proportions of different food groups are imbalanced, leading to nutritional imbalances and poor digestion and absorption. There is a severe lack of dietary fiber and alkaline-forming foods, and too few antioxidant components. The consequences are a loss of skin radiance and elasticity, dry hair, decreased resistance, and listlessness.
The advice for Tong Tong is to gradually break free from the restaurant habit and learn simple cooking. She should prepare a variety of grains, beans, tubers, and green vegetables daily to change things up, and eat more fruit and small amounts of nuts frequently to supplement the nutrients she can't get from restaurants. If she must eat out, she should try to avoid places with overly strong flavors and instead choose simple, light dishes, eating more cold salads, and be sure to have a staple food. It might feel bland and the appetite might decrease at first, but once she adapts, her taste buds' sensitivity will be restored, and her eating habits will become healthier.
When dining out, to ensure a balanced nutritional intake, pay attention to the following points:
1. Drink less alcohol and try to avoid sweet beverages; instead, opt for calorie-free drinks like green tea, oolong tea, or chrysanthemum tea.
2. Always eat the staple food first, before you lose your appetite for it after sampling all the other dishes. Eating the staple food first not only protects the stomach but also reduces the risk of harmful waste products from the excessive breakdown of proteins and fats.
3. Try to avoid fried foods and high-fat dishes. For the same ingredients, choose cooking methods that don't require adding oil, such as cold salads, steaming, braising, boiling, stewing, or soups.
4. Eat more vegetables and soy products, and less meat. There are usually some green vegetables on the table, and even in meat dishes, you might find mushrooms, wood ear fungus, or winter bamboo shoots. Make a conscious effort to choose these foods with your chopsticks.
5. Ask yourself every day: Did I have a cup of yogurt? Did I eat half a kilogram of vegetables? Did I eat 150 grams of staple food? Did I eat a type of coarse grain? Did I eat beans or tofu? Did I have an egg? Did I eat too much meat and fat?
6. Don't eat too much; stop when you are 70-80% full. Banquets are long, and it's easy to overeat unintentionally, so be especially mindful of stopping before your stomach is completely full.
7. Try to supplement with some fresh vegetables, coarse grain congee, and light foods like mushrooms and tofu at home to let your tired digestive system rest and to get enough vitamins and dietary fiber.
8. If you're too busy with work to cook or have a proper meal, it's recommended to substitute with yogurt or milk plus fruit.