Sushi has built a reputation for being a light, clean and healthy fast-food alternative.
But the Japanese staple can be anything but.
RELATED: 10 “healthy” foods you should NOT be eating
A sweet chilli prawn hand roll from Sushi Train, for example, contains 275 calories, 1030mg of sodium, 7.6 grams of sugar and 5.6g of fat.
Down three of these rolls in one sitting and you’re looking at a stunning 825 calories, 23g of sugar and well over 3000mg of sodium. These figures compare unfavourably to a Big Mac, which packs 520 calories and 993mg of sodium.
Other varieties of sushi rolls that also punch above their weight when it comes to calorie count are cooked tuna rolls (630 calories for 3 rolls), teriyaki chicken rolls (519 calories) and crispy chicken rolls (576 calories).
RELATED: how spicy foods can help you burn an extra 116 calories a day
Speaking to The New Daily, Melissa Adamski, a researcher in the Nutrition and Dietetics Department at Monash University, singled out the lack of fibre, protein and vegetables in typical sushi rolls.
“When you sit down with two cups of white rice in a stir fry, you can gauge how much you’re actually eating,” she said. “Wrapped up in a roll, it’s harder to gauge.”
Still keen to down a roll or two at your next meal? Adamski suggests opting for brown rice instead of white. “The brown rice makes you feel fuller and provides more fibre,” she said.
Joel Feren, an accredited practising dietitian, meanwhile, recommended going easy on the soy sauce sachets. “You can really overdose on salt with sushi. Some dishes are cooked in soy [sauce], crab meat is high in sodium – and when you add one of those 5ml containers of soy [sauce], you’re adding an extra 300 mg of sodium.”