Diet food from Thailand

Thailand's cuisine is regarded by many people as the one of the best in the world. Almost all Thai food is cooked with fresh ingredients, including vegetable, poultry, pork, fish, seafood and some beef. Lots of use is made of herbs and spices, and flavour is maintained by adding lime juice, lemon grass, ginger and fresh coriander.

Thai cuisine uses large amounts of coconut and is therefore not always a very low fat way of eating, although rates of obesity, heart disease and cancer are relatively low in Thailand compared to westernized nations. It could be the high intake of vegetables and fish in the Thai diet that offer protection, but experts now believe that coconut is not as unhealthy as previously believed.

In the past, we were led away from eating coconut fat due to the fact that it is highly saturated, but recently we've found that not all saturated fat is bad. The Thai also make use of unhydrogenated coconut oil, not the hydrogenated type that can increase cholesterol.

Although high in fat and kilojoules, coconut contains a very digestible type of fat, is very nutritious and has numerous health benefits, including antimicrobial action and weight reduction. Coconut fat also appears to enhance the absorption of omega-3 fatty acids.

The Thai people use liberal amounts of chili in their cooking, which not only helps pep up the metabolism, but also supplies a good amount of vitamin C and antioxidants. Another regular plant food in the Thai diet is bitter melon, used to impart a distinctive flavour to foods. Bitter melon has powerful healing properties and may have a positive influence on diabetes.

Thai food can also be pretty oily and does include some fried food, so stay away from these items when visiting a Thai restaurant. A low-fat stir-fry (try a basil and lemon grass base, for example) is best if you're watching the kilojoules, otherwise dig in to rich and warming coconut curry with lots of veggies.