Settle an arguement - Is Indian take away food healthy?

shawty

Quick one...

Is getting a take away a week from the likes of Bombay Pantry Healthy? I mean do they use good ingredients or are the fatty??

I was under the impression that regular fast food wasn't a good thing for your health but I suppose I'm not too sure what to class fast food as??

Susie_Q

Generally, no. Lots of excessive oil, deep-frying and salt.

shawty

I see :)

Indian food gets a reputation of being healthy because Indian spices are known to have health benefits.

However an Indian meal as a whole would generally be unhealthy for the reasons Susie_Q said.

Hanley

For something to be 'healthy' it should promote increased levels of health. Indian food does not do that.

For something to be 'unhealthy' it must damage your health in some way. One Indian meal won't do that.

It's neutral. I wish people would stop classifying food as being only healthy or unhealthy.

Sid_Justice

Hanley wrote: »

For something to be 'healthy' it should promote increased levels of health. Indian food does not do that.

For something to be 'unhealthy' it must damage your health in some way. One Indian meal won't do that.

It's neutral. I wish people would stop classifying food as being only healthy or unhealthy.

Nutritional status is an aspect of health. If you were malnourished an Indian meal would go some way to improving that and thus improving your health.

shawty

Hanley wrote: »

For something to be 'unhealthy' it must damage your health in some way. One Indian meal won't do that.

How about a trip to Bombay Pantry once a week? That's pretty much how the conversation popped up, my mate heads there at least once a week... He's a very healty guy in general so I'm sure he'll be grand but he was under the impression that it was more healthy than unhealthy.

Yeah that's grand, of course it depends on what he's having, and how it's made. For example a Korma can be made with cream or yoghurt. As already mentioned, health can be slightly abstract, depending on what you're looking for. Personally if I was trying to lose weight, I would see an Indian as unhealthy ie. wouldn't help me reach my goal, whereas as I am at the moment, I'd think an Indian would be a healthy meal, as I'm not in need of cutting back on fat/salt or whatever.

Hanley

Sid_Justice wrote: »

Nutritional status is an aspect of health. If you were malnourished an Indian meal would go some way to improving that and thus improving your health.

Ok... point taken. But what person who's malnourished is likely to have access to an indian meal?

Lets qualify it so and say that 99.9% of the time Indian's aren't 'healthy' in that the give you no discernable health benefits.

shawty wrote: »

How about a trip to Bombay Pantry once a week? That's pretty much how the conversation popped up, my mate heads there at least once a week... He's a very healty guy in general so I'm sure he'll be grand but he was under the impression that it was more healthy than unhealthy.

Is it 'healthy' - no

Is it 'unhealthy' - no

Is it better than eating a big dirty pizza/chinese - arguably

Next time he says it ask him why it's 'healthy' and what positive benefits it has on his health other than stopping him from eating some trans-fat laden grease feed.

boogle

Don't Indian people have a pretty high level of heart disease? Think I saw that on a documentary or something. I guess it's all the ghee:D

whiteonion

Indian food contains way to many carbs. This will raise your blood sugar through the roof. A high blood sugar can cause damage to your eyes and organs. The dangers of a high blood sugar are well documented. I would say Indian take away is almost as bad as eating mars bars.

metamorphosis

Oh my god people, don't eat an Indian (unless you wan't a guide dog)!!

Im joking. But seriously, there's ott, then there's OTT

Bottle_of_Smoke

Depends what you're getting obviously but I'd say the healthiest takeaway.

The chicken tastes a lot better quality than the crap you get in chinese takeaways. Sauces taste a lot less sugary. I definitely feel a lot better after them.

Sure they're high calorie but its a takeaway like.

groovyg

shawty wrote: »

How about a trip to Bombay Pantry once a week? That's pretty much how the conversation popped up, my mate heads there at least once a week... He's a very healty guy in general so I'm sure he'll be grand but he was under the impression that it was more healthy than unhealthy.

I would think they are unhealthy, take away food aint good. Its ok once in a while but with Indian food its very oily and the portion sizes in the bombay pantry are huge which also adds to the high calorie content.

Solair

It's impossible to generalise about Indian food there's such a vast variety of it. However, what's typically served up in your average Irish or British "Indian" Take-away is often about as healthy as eating 3 Big Macs washed down with a litre of coke.

Some dishes are very high in fats (e.g. cream), oils, artificial food colourings, salt and sugar.

Again, it entirely depends on the quality of the restaurant and what you order but, overall, I wouldn't reckon they're particularly healthy from a cheap take-out place.

Blisterman

Homemade curries can be very healthy. Keep the oil and cream to a minimum, lots of vegetables and spices, stewed with chicken breast. Delicious.

implausible

Interesting discussion. I love the odd indian meal myself. What choice from the indian would be the best of a bad lot then?

Blisterman

From a takeaway, Tandoori Chicken would probably be best, as it's usually grilled. The thick sauces are the ones to watch out for.