The top three food aspects Chinese pay
attention to are taste, safety and nutrition, as revealed by the 2013
China Diet Index released by Xiaokang Magazine. The magazine launched a
nationwide survey on a NetTouch.com from November to December of 2012.
Results showed that spicy has topped the flavor list for three
consecutive years running, whereas bitter foods, in spite of being
promoted by many experts, always rank last with only 2.6% of
participants showing a taste for them.
Correspondingly, the two most taste bud-pleasing cuisines for the
Chinese would be the Sichuan and Hunan ones, making up for 48% and 26%
respectively. The number one foreign food products stem from South
Korea, famous for its hot and spicy preference.
Food security a real concern
The research also shows that 89.3% of interviewees share great food
safety concerns, with over half of them "unhappy" about this particular
issue in China. The public suggested the government produce more sound
laws and regulations as to enhance food safety supervision and punish
those in violation of them, the survey said.
In addition, organic and green products have become more popular on
people's dining tables. The survey said 98% of participants do buy
green, with 31% of them doing so on a regular basis.
Ill health is becoming more common
Yet there seems to be a downside to China's fondness of zesty food. As
most Chinese prefer their diet to have a strong flavor to it, the
general public's health seems to be deteriorating, with less than half
of all 1,005 participants stating they do not suffer from any medical
issues. The top five medical conditions that pose a risk to health are
currently high cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, neurasthenia,
obesity and cardiovascular disease.
Peking Union Medical College Hospital nutritionist Yu Kang said that not
just spicy, but salty too contributes to the abovementioned health
issues. Yu explained that their occasional consumption won't cause any
problems, but any form of overindulgence will definitely harm the body.
The survey has so far been conducted for nine years, addressing
audiences from the eastern, central as well as western regions of China,
and taking into consideration gender, age, education and career.