# Is Sushi Healthy?



## Mylegsbig (Apr 26, 2005)

Not the tempura fried garbage.  Just normal sushi rolls.  

im thinking it could help my cutting diet alot. the best sushi place in town here in san antonio is 2 blocks away from me. should i take advantage?  Is it low calorie stuff?


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## GB (Apr 26, 2005)

Sushi can be very healthy, but like everything it is healthy in moderation (even though I would happily eat sushi for breakfast lunch and dinner forever).


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## kitchenelf (Apr 26, 2005)

It's healthy.  Healthier than most things and the oils/fats found in it is usually the "good for you" stuff.  

It would be unhealthy if you were pregnant or had a low immune system.  It would also be unhealthy if the fish was not fresh!!!


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## Haggis (Apr 26, 2005)

There's nothing rubbish about tempura!

Sushi is probably one of the healthiest forms of takeaway you could come across.


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## kitchenelf (Apr 26, 2005)

tempura's pretty good Haggis, I agree.  We make it sometimes.  Just heat up the wok with peanut oil.  We like onions, carrot slices if I can find a huge carrot, broccoli, mushrooms, zucchini, cauliflower, and there was one really strange thing we tried one time but I can't remember now what it was - or if we liked it - I just remember us taking a chance lol


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## Mylegsbig (Apr 27, 2005)

i love tempura - but it's fried breading, i cant really expect it to be too healthy

^^


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## GB (Apr 27, 2005)

Tempura is not actually sushi. Sushi refers to the rice. A lot of people think sushi is raw fish, but that is not the case. Lots of times sushi does have raw fish, but it can also have cooked fish or no fish at all. As long as it has the short grained seasoned rice that is what makes it sushi.


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## jennyema (Apr 27, 2005)

Mylegsbig said:
			
		

> i love tempura - but it's fried breading, i cant really expect it to be too healthy
> 
> ^^


 
Tempura breading is quite light and if fried correctly should not retain too much oil.

But sushi or sashimi is probably lower in fat and calories.

I lost a lot of weight relatively painlessly by cutting out/down on most "white" foods, like rice, bread and potatoes while increasing my exercise quite a bit.  Frankly, there's not much in those things that your body doesn;t get elsewhere.


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## soapy (Apr 28, 2005)

GB said:
			
		

> Tempura is not actually sushi. Sushi refers to the rice. A lot of people think sushi is raw fish, but that is not the case. Lots of times sushi does have raw fish, but it can also have cooked fish or no fish at all. As long as it has the short grained seasoned rice that is what makes it sushi.


 
You're right, tempura has nothing to do with sushi. It's like hamburgers and french fries.

Japanese food in general is quite healthy, but if you're just eating mass amounts of rice, you could still gain weight. Some people do, some people don't. Sushi rice is just rice with some vinegar in it. It can be topped with fish, crab, egg etc or they can come in rolls. 

Fish in general is a good way to go if you want to cut back on other meats. Everything in moderation though. Having an all sushi diet wouldn't really work because of all the rice, but I do love sashimi


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## Haggis (Apr 29, 2005)

Fish is a great way to cut back on your calories without losing out on essential nutrients and other elements like protein.

I love how 'fatty' or 'oily' fish is that with more than 2% fat. Oh yeah fish is good.


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## GB (Apr 29, 2005)

Also if too much rice is a concern then you could always get sashimi which is just the raw fish. absolutely delicious! They key to good sushi is location though. Where do you live Mylegsbig? If it is somewhere that fresh fish is readily available then go for it!!!


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## Lugaru (Apr 30, 2005)

I was gonna say about sushi being healthy: it's especially good if you take your time eating it (chopsticks help here). One thing that I notice is that most men eat WAY too fast, usually because they grew up competing with their brothers and friends "for the last slice". If you eat sushi slowly you'll find yourself full nice and early and it's suprisingly easy on the stomache, especially when acompanied by 1 cup of sake or beer. 

On the other hand shoveling a dozen tuna rolls will kill you just as good as a bunch of hamburgers will.


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## kitchenelf (Apr 30, 2005)

I have also made sushi with brown rice - still VERY good.  Make a peanut sauce but on the thinner side.  It's excellent with the brown rice.  If you don't eat the raw fish grill some Tempeh to use in place of it - very good!  But the soy sauce and peanut sauce is a good combination.


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## janetGood (Apr 30, 2005)

I was just reading about the best fish to buy, since my kids eat alot of shrimp I was worried about Mercury and toxins in fish. I found out the younger fish has less toxins since they build up in fish as they get older and bigger. We limit our tuna to twice a month, but other smaller fish like salmon you can eat a couple times a week, Im not sure how big yellowtail are. Our Sushi usually has tuna, yellowtail, eel, crab, shrimp and salmon, I only worry about the tuna so far. 
If your trying to loose weight the easiest way is to have a protein, a starch and big helping of veggies three times a day. Your protein serving should be about the size of a deck of cards add a little if your bigger person. Onions are really good about carrying fats out of the body also. All those things work togethor in a meal and it is a good long term plan to keep your weight in check, if you don't get enough protein you will be hungry all day, and the veggies help carry out the fats. Sushi is a good source of protein and kelp is good at stimulating the thyroid along with shrimp. Try and stay away from too much fried stuff. Now if I could just follow that myself, easier said than done.


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## -DEADLY SUSHI- (May 21, 2005)

Why........ "yes", I _*AM*_ healthy!!! Thanks for asking!!!


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## Lugaru (May 22, 2005)

-DEADLY SUSHI- said:
			
		

> Why........ "yes", I _*AM*_ healthy!!! Thanks for asking!!!



But your... deadly...

(lugaru take's a few steps back)


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## Caine (May 23, 2005)

Mylegsbig said:
			
		

> *Is Sushi Healthy?*


As long as you pass on the blowfish, yes, it is exceptionally healthy.


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## masteraznchefjr (May 29, 2005)

yea sushi i would say its semi-healthy. since my parents keep saying that eating white rice will make ppl big, which i doubt. 

raw fish = sashimi 

raw fish = high mercury content but i don't care as long as its good.  we'll eventually get use to that mercury in fish


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## SpiceUmUp (Jun 3, 2005)

I am on a type II diabetes diet.  I treat myself to some sashimi every other week or so.  It is a great food for a diabetic (or for some one pre diabetic like myself).  No rice, no bread, ZERO carbohydrates and relatively low in fat and colories.  YUMMY to boot!


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## Jikoni (Nov 20, 2005)

Sushi is healthy,depending on what is in it and don't overdo on the soy sauce, there is too much salt in it (try low salt soy sauce) so if you are trying to eat healthy, certainly not a good idea. I  worked in Japan for a year, and discovered that my teeth were going brown  I had to polish them regularly. I think it was from the soy sauce  I ate everything in soy sauce while there.


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## theislandgirl (Nov 22, 2005)

soapy said:
			
		

> ...
> Japanese food in general is quite healthy, but if you're just eating mass amounts of rice, you could still gain weight. Some people do, some people don't. *Sushi rice is just rice with some vinegar in it.* It can be topped with fish, crab, egg etc or they can come in rolls....Having an all sushi diet wouldn't really work because of all the rice, but I do love sashimi



Actually, sushi rice is seasoned with vinegar and sugar, it's distinctly sweet.

I go for handrolls (cones) when I'm treating myself to some marvelously healthy sushi style foods, that way it either has less 'seasoned' rice (I avoid white or not-whole/processed carbohydrates and grains, minimum nutrition for maximum calories in those) or I have the rice substituted with shredded daikon  (white radish), or spinach or whatever vegetable is available.  You get  ALL good stuff: the seaweed (minerals), the fish or egg or whatever (protein), the good fats from the seafood usually, the veg.  And of course the fabulous flavors.


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## Michael_Schaap (Dec 4, 2005)

*Certainly*

Sure it is.  However I am finding that the addition of Soy Sauce might not make it all that helathy sodium wise.  Because of a heart condition I have to limit sodium, but with a little Wasabe(sp), I'm back to enjoying it again 

Michael


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Dec 4, 2005)

Sushi is made with a short-grain, starchy rice.  That's what helps it stick together in a pretty little roll.  Technically, sushi refers to a rice dish that rolls sticky rice, flavored with rice-vinager and a bit of sugar, around some type of filling.  It can be rolled with seweed, or not, according to your preference.

White rice, especially the short-grained variety, is not the most healthy food.  It rapidly sends sugar into the blood, forcing the body to increase blood insulin.  This in turn has the effect in healthy people of removing too much sugar from the blood, both through metabolization, and conversion of blood sugar into fat which is stored for times of starvation.  It stresses the pancreas and, if done on a regular basis (think of eating lots of potatoes with every meal), can be a factor that leads to type-2 diabetes.

Eating sushi doesn't have to be unhealthy.  But as with all foods, it has to be eaten sparingly.  All foods have both healthy and unhealthy effects on the body.  The absolutely best form of dieting is to teach yourself about good nutrition, and eat healthy, forever.  It requires a life-style change.  You've heard it all before, whole grains, including such things as flax seed, oatmeal, whole wheat, etc., deep-green veggies, leafy veggies, deep orange veggies (again in moderation) brightly colored foods such as peppers, berries, lugumes (the more color, the higher the nutritional content, say kidney beans versus great white, though neither are nutritional slouches), dairy, meats (lean and grilled, or broiled are the healthiest ways to eat meat, and red meat can also contribute to adult onset diabetes).

In short, eat a small anount of a wide variety of veggies, fruits, meats (inclucing fish), and whole grains.  Eat reasonable portions.  Train yourself to eat when you're hungry, and eat slowly.  Take the time to savor each mouthfull.  Then, increase your caloric output through exercise, or activity.  Then, you won't have to diet.  And you will be able to do so much more with your life, and enjoy it.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North


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