# Why is it after you eat Chinese food, you are hungry again an hour later **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 27, 2004, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276 "2004-04-27T14:36:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fluffball86\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/91b2a8/32.png) [@fluffball86\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluffball86_1)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/1 "2004-04-27T14:36:46Z")
Is there some scientific reason for this? It never fails, after I eat some Chinese food, I’ll watch TV or something, then in about another hour I’ll have a craving for [Ginger Beef](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=253239) or something else. Is there some nutritional deficiency in chinese food that causes this? Thanks in advance for any insight. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/2 "2004-04-27T14:42:00Z")
I’ve heard this odd stereotype for years, and never understood it. I find Chinese food pretty filling. We almost always pack up the leftovers for the next day, and we’ve never felt the need to dig into them an hour later. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/3 "2004-04-27T14:43:27Z")
This doesn’t happen to me. I eat a fair amount of Chinese food, mainly chicken and shrimp dishes, and I don’t feel hungry again sooner than with any other kind of food. Except for chili. That stuff keeps me full so long I can’t sleep; I finally had to stop eating it. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/4 "2004-04-27T14:44:24Z")
I usually don’t get hungry one hour after eating Chinese food. However, ginger beef is in a class by itself. You hear about those mice that will forgo everything to keep pressing the lever to get cocaine? If I had a lever that I could push and get ginger beef, I’d make those mice look like the model of self control. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/5 "2004-04-27T14:46:49Z")
A lot of people would get a bloated feeling from MSG. This would contribute to feeling very full, but would soon pass making one feel hungry again. Even just basic high sodium meals cause you to drink alot, feeling fuller faster, and this passes as well. My experience is that MSG is used much less, so it doesn’t seem to be the case as much nowadays (feeling hungry shortly after eatinh chinese food), but I do still hear/think it. ---
**Author:** ![Maximum\_DL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47774/32.png) [@Maximum\_DL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maximum_DL)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/6 "2004-04-27T15:16:54Z")
Perhaps you should try filling up on rice or noodles. Rice is the most important part of any Chinese meal. They’re the equivalent of bread and potatoes. My parents run a Chinese restaurant and every meal sold comes with rice. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/7 "2004-04-27T15:23:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Perhaps you should try filling up on rice or noodles. Rice is the most important part of any Chinese meal. They’re the equivalent of bread and potatoes. My parents run a Chinese restaurant and every meal sold comes with rice. You need to teach this to the Chinese restaurants in Massachusetts. This is the only place I’ve ever eaten in a Chinese restaurant where rice has to be ordered separately. You don’t get it unless uyou ask for it (except in as few discerning restaurants). In fact, in some Boston-area Chinese restaurants you get, not rice, but Italian Bread (!!!) I suspect that a lot of their clientele is of Italian extraction, and _expects_ every meal to come with italian bread. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/8 "2004-04-27T15:24:40Z")
You think that’s bad Cal, here in Ireland if you order Chinese food it comes with chips. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/9 "2004-04-27T15:59:06Z")
Man, this never happens to me! Of course, when I eat Chinese around here, it’s at World Buffett. Ummmmm…chicken 12 ways…yummy. I usually don’t feel hungry again for at least 24 hours! ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/10 "2004-04-27T16:45:53Z")
Oh, yeah…loading up on white rice will contribute to making you feel hungry sooner. White rice will spike your insulin levels, and when they come down after the spike, you’ll be hungry. To make the full feeling last longer, cut out the foods that won’t spike insulin levels (white carbs, refined sugars). Load up on the meat and veggies. This combined with no MSG and low sodium would help…except the low sodium part might be tricky. ---
**Author:** ![Hemlock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Hemlock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hemlock)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/11 "2004-04-27T16:58:01Z")
I eat Chinese food nearly every day, and I am not hungry for a long time afterwards. I know southern Chinese who dread going to the West bacause “it’s all potatoes” which, apparently, don’t provide the same feeling of fullness. Can’t say I can detect any difference. Eat enough starch, and you will not be hungry again for hours. And in much of China, BTW, wheat is the staple, not rice. So, I’d say it’s a myth. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/12 "2004-04-27T18:03:42Z")
> [@Hemlock](#): > > I eat Chinese food nearly every day, and I am not hungry for a long time afterwards. > So, I’d say it’s a myth. I think the OP refers to Westernized “Chinese Food”, which varies greatly - to say the least - from food native to different regions in China. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/13 "2004-04-27T18:25:50Z")
> [@](#): > > You think that’s bad Cal, here in Ireland if you order Chinese food it comes with chips. Hey, when I went to a Chinese restaurant in Limerick, I got no chips – just rice. It was also the only Chinese restaurant I’ve been to =-- anywhere – that actually gave us chopstick rests. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/14 "2004-04-27T18:26:32Z")
TMI warning: After eating incredibly hot and spicy Szechwan food (I always ask for extra spices), I get the sh\*ts about an hour later, if not much, much sooner. Cleans out my whole system, I tells ya, from top to _bottom_. 🙂 So, yeah, I’m hungry again. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/15 "2004-04-27T18:44:16Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Hey, when I went to a Chinese restaurant in Limerick, I got no chips – just rice. Oh, well, if it was an actual _restaurant_ that’s different … I was thinking of the takeaways. ---
**Author:** ![BurnMeUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@BurnMeUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BurnMeUp)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/16 "2004-04-27T21:45:31Z")
It may speak to the protien content of your restaraunt of choice. If you order a beef (or chicken or shrimp) dish and it’s mostly veggies, heay you’ll get hungry faster. The veggies are much quicker to digest. There was a place we went a time or two in Utah called The Magic Wok… we redubbed it The World o Celery, cine damn near anything you ordered was 45% celery since it’s cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Skeptico](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19b73/32.png) [@Skeptico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skeptico)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/17 "2004-04-27T22:25:37Z")
Ancient chinese tradition dictates that everything comes in pairs, the whole ying-yang tad. Anyways, your ginger beef is the ying and the rice is the yang, and they should come in equal parts. Complete WAG now, but I think if you eat just the ying without the yang (the rice), that’s bad feng shui!!! As for the OP, I don’t feel hungry after eating authentic chinese food. I haven’t had westernized chinese for a while, so I can’t comment on that. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2004, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/18 "2004-04-27T22:38:14Z")
> [@ruadh](#): > > You think that’s bad Cal, here in Ireland if you order Chinese food it comes with chips. Are your “chips” what an American would consider “french fries” ? ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2004, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/19 "2004-04-28T10:59:03Z")
> [@Jonathan Woodall](#): > > Are your “chips” what an American would consider “french fries” ? Yes, they are. In my experience they don’t come automatically with a Chinese deal but all Chinese restaurants will serve them on request and more than half of people will request them. I’ve even seen some barbarian order them as a side in a Thai restaurant. ---
**Author:** ![manwithaplan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@manwithaplan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manwithaplan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2004, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276/20 "2004-04-28T11:36:08Z")
> [@ruadh](#): > > You think that’s bad Cal, here in Ireland if you order Chinese food it comes with chips. In fairness, you _can_ have chips but the choice is usually chips, boiled rice or fried rice and they generally ask which you prefer. I reluctantly admit to occasionally asking for chips - think of it as a fusion thing. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-it-after-you-eat-chinese-food-you-are-hungry-again-an-hour-later/242276.md?page=2)