One mooncake a day is enough say doctors

While mooncakes are a must during the Mid-Autumn Festival on Thursday, doctors are warning about the danger of overeating the festival treat.

They say people, especially the elderly and those with chronic diseases, should not eat too many mooncakes, which are usually sweet and oily. 

In one case, a woman with diabetes was taken to the hospital when she fell into a coma after eating two mooncakes. Doctors said she suffered fatal ketoacidosis due to an acute metabolic disorder after her blood sugar shot up rapidly.

“One mooncake per day is enough for an adult, while half is enough for an elderly person or a child. People with chronic diseases or those with hypertension and diabetes had better not eat mooncakes,” said Dr Song He of the Shanghai Yodak Cardio-Thoracic Hospital. “Eating too many mooncakes can cause digestive system disorders.”

People with diabetes should also watch out for “sugar-free” mooncakes, doctors said. 

“Sugar-free mooncakes contain sugar substitutes, which also can increase blood sugar levels,”said Dr Hu Lianhua of Shanghai Ren’ai Hospital. “For some patients eating such mooncakes freely is very harmful.”