When You Eat A Whole Rotisserie Chicken, This Is What Happens To Your Body

Rotisserie chicken is a whole chicken that has been seasoned and skewered onto a rotisserie or spit-roasting, which cooks the bird in its own juices by slowly rotating it over consistent heat. It is probably one of the most convenient grab-and-go food items you can find at your favorite grocery store, and what's not to love about it? It's juicy, incredibly flavorful, sometimes even crispy, extremely versatile, and budget-friendly. Plus, it is known for being on the healthier side compared to other ready-to-eat chicken options like fried chicken, seeing that it is minimally processed and, because of its cooking method, it keeps the adverse health effects of deep-fried foods at bay. However, it's worth understanding the immediate and longer-term impacts on your body from consuming a whole rotisserie chicken at once.

Rotisserie chicken is an excellent high-quality protein source, meaning that it can potentially help with muscle and bone health, as well as boost your metabolism and even promote weight loss (per Healthline). However, eating a whole chicken can also lead to nutrient imbalances and deficiencies, potential digestive issues, and, regardless of having a healthier profile than its fried counterpart, it can still affect your heart health, especially if this becomes a daily practice. This article explores the potentially good and not-so-good things that can happen to your body when you indulge in this popular meal so you can make informed choices about when and how much rotisserie chicken to eat.

Alexander Tominsky, a man from Philadelphia who ate an entire rotisserie chicken per day for 40 days straight in 2022, reportedly lost 15 pounds during his chicken challenge (via Newsweek). While eating a whole rotisserie chicken in one sitting may sound excessive, you might wonder how it promotes weight loss. Well, a couple of factors make this possible, with one of the most predominant being its high protein content, which can average 150 grams (via USDA). 

According to an article in the Journal of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome, protein promotes weight loss through multiple metabolic pathways. It can keep your hunger at bay by increasing the levels of the hunger-reducing hormones peptide tyrosine-tyrosine (PYY), glucagon-like peptide- 1 (GLP-1), and cholecystokinin (CCK), while reducing the levels of the hunger-promoting hormone ghrelin. With these changes, your food intake significantly drops, taking your weight down with it. Since you would be feeling full for hours, you're likely to eat very few foods in addition to the chicken, meaning that your daily calorie intake would average the 1,200 calories roughly provided by an entire chicken, which, per the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, comprise the dietary needs for children between 2 and 8 years old and should not be intended for children over 9 or adults. 

Lastly, protein also promotes weight loss by increasing your energy expenditure. Your body spends more energy digesting and processing protein than carbs and fats, an effect known as diet-induced thermogenesis (DIT). Thus, the higher your protein intake, the more calories your body burns.

Have you ever felt burning in the middle of your chest after eating a copious meal? If so, you might have experienced heartburn, a painful symptom of gastroesophageal reflux (GER). GER is a condition in which your lower esophageal sphincter (LES) — which should remain closed after food enters your stomach — relaxes or opens up, allowing the contents of your stomach to move back up your esophagus, including both food and stomach acids. Hence, the painful and burning-like feelings (via the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases). While GER can happen due to numerous factors, eating large meals and delayed gastric emptying can be caused by eating a whole rotisserie chicken in one sitting (via the Mayo Clinic).

On the one hand, eating too much in one sitting can increase the pressure in your stomach, causing your LES to relax when it shouldn't (per the National Library of Medicine). On the other hand, eating foods high in protein affects some of the hormones involved in gastric emptying. Gastric emptying refers to the part of the digestive process in which food leaves your stomach to enter the small intestine and, according to an article published in Current Opinion in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Obesity, high GLP-1 and PYY levels and low ghrelin levels (all of which are caused by protein intake) can delay gastric emptying, meaning that it increases the time it takes your stomach to empty its contents. Therefore, by keeping large amounts of food in your stomach longer, eating a whole rotisserie chicken increases your risk of heartburn.

You might think that by choosing rotisserie chicken over fried chicken, you're doing your heart a favor, right? Well, this is only partially correct, seeing that when you factor in rotisserie chicken's sodium content and the fact that you're consuming an entire chicken in one sitting, you might find that you could still put your heart health at risk. According to the USDA, a whole rotisserie chicken can pack a whopping 2,060 milligrams of sodium, although its total sodium count may vary depending on the chicken's size and seasoning. This would represent 90% of the recommended amount of the mineral you should consume per day (via the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)), and consuming this much sodium in one sitting can strain your cardiovascular system, especially if you do this on a daily basis.

Eating too much sodium causes your body to hold onto more water in an attempt to dilute the high sodium levels in your blood, leading to water retention — which you might notice as bloating (via Healthline). Plus, high sodium intake is a known risk factor for high blood pressure (hypertension), which, in turn, raises the risk of heart disease. This happens because the excess water increases blood volume, causing more blood to flow through your blood vessels. This added volume can strain both the blood vessels and your heart by making it work harder to pump the extra blood, per the American Heart Association (AHA). So, while an occasional rotisserie chicken might be a convenient choice, eating a whole chicken in one sitting might not be the healthiest option.

Aside from its juicy meat, one of the tastiest parts of a rotisserie chicken is, without a doubt, its skin. However, as with many indulgent foods, you should eat chicken skin in moderation, seeing that overeating it, say by eating a whole chicken, could raise your cholesterol levels. This is because that's where much of the chicken's fat content is concentrated. In fact, per MedicalNewsToday, it can hold roughly 80% of the bird's total fat content. The USDA notes that one whole chicken can pack up to 36 grams of saturated fats, whereas the FDA recommends limiting saturated fat intake to 20 grams per day. So, eating a whole rotisserie chicken with the skin easily surpasses this limit, especially if the chicken is prepared with added oils or butter to enhance flavor.

Per the AHA, a high saturated fat intake leads to high blood cholesterol levels, negatively impacting heart health by increasing the risk of heart disease. This is because cholesterol is one of the substances present in plaque, which can stick to the inside of your blood vessels and accumulate over time, causing them to narrow and harden, making it hard for blood to flow. This plaque buildup is known as atherosclerosis, and it is a risk factor for heart attack and stroke because it can eventually cut off blood flow to your heart or brain (via AHA). Thus, to enjoy rotisserie chicken more healthily, consider removing the skin before eating.

Eating a whole rotisserie chicken in one sitting can significantly impact your nutrient balance because it barely leaves room for additional food during your meal and potentially even during the rest of your day. This means that while it might be an excellent source of high-quality protein and some fats, it restricts your intake of other essential food groups, such as grains, vegetables, and fruits, which are dietary sources of carbs and, more importantly, fiber and plant-beneficial compounds, such as antioxidants, which help fight numerous diseases to keep you healthy (via WebMD).

Vegetables and grains like brown rice or oats provide complex carbs, while fruits primarily provide simple carbs, both of which provide energy for your brain and muscles (via MedicalNewsToday). In addition, they are also the primary sources of dietary fiber, a type of carb that your body can't digest but still needs for optimal health. For example, it helps lower blood cholesterol and sugar levels, adds bulk to stools to support regular bowel movements, promotes gut health by feeding your gut's friendly bacteria, reduces your risk of colon cancer, and facilitates weight loss by increasing feelings of fullness (per the Mayo Clinic). As you can see, it's important to incorporate a variety of foods from all food groups into your diet. To do so, the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggest following the recommendations set by MyPlate, which consist of filling half of your plate with fruits and vegetables and dividing the rest between whole grains and lean proteins.

Micronutrients include vitamins and minerals, which are compounds that your body needs in very small amounts compared to carbs, proteins, and fats (macronutrients). However, they play vital roles in numerous bodily functions that help you stay alive and healthy. So much so that micronutrient deficiencies are linked to several detrimental health effects and diseases (per the World Health Organization (WHO)). While eating a whole rotisserie chicken can help you meet your daily protein needs, it doesn't provide a balanced micronutrient profile, meaning that relying exclusively on it can lead to deficiencies over time.

For instance, chicken is a great source of B vitamins like niacin, pyridoxine, and cobalamine, or vitamins B3, B6, and B12, respectively. It also provides good amounts of phosphorus and selenium (per USDA). Nevertheless, it lacks a wide range of additional vitamins and minerals vital for overall health, and important nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin K, magnesium, and iodine (to mention a few) would be missing from your diet. The best way to ensure you provide your body with all the macro and micronutrients it needs to function is by eating a balanced diet comprised of fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and fats (via The Nutrition Source). Thus, instead of eating a whole rotisserie chicken, try eating just a piece served with a side of potatoes (carbs) and salad (veggies).

Rotisserie chicken is considered a minimally processed food, yet eating a whole store-bought one might mean potentially consuming a significant amount of additives, such as preservatives and flavor enhancers, which are commonly used in commercial ready-to-eat foods. Food additives are natural or artificial substances added to foods to fulfill a specific purpose (via the FDA). Common additives include flavoring or sweetening agents to boost a food's taste and preservatives to prevent microbial contamination (via WHO). In the case of rotisserie chicken, they might include flavor-enhancing agents, such as monosodium glutamate (MSG), and preservatives like sodium phosphate, which help increase shelf life.

Government agencies and laws approve and monitor these ingredients before they reach your food. However, they're generally intended to be consumed in small quantities. Therefore, eating an entire rotisserie chicken could expose your body to higher-than-recommended amounts of these compounds, especially if you eat it regularly. For a healthier approach, consider choosing a rotisserie chicken with minimal additives or preparing your own chicken at home, where you control the ingredients and avoid unnecessary exposure to potentially harmful additives.

Eating a whole rotisserie chicken could significantly increase your chances of getting food poisoning, especially if it has been kept at unsafe temperatures. Food poisoning happens when disease-causing microorganisms (pathogens) grow and multiply in the food that is later consumed, leading to symptoms like stomach pain, vomiting, and diarrhea (via the Mayo Clinic). According to the USDA Food and Inspection Service, leaving food out for over two hours in temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit (known as the "danger zone") provides an ideal environment for pathogens to thrive, potentially leading to foodborne illness when consumed, which could be the case for rotisserie chicken.

Rotisserie chickens are typically kept warm in stores after cooking, and while we all want to believe that stores ensure their food is kept at safe temperatures, this is not always the case. For instance, Fox11 reported that during a visit to a grocery store in Southern California, they found rotisserie chickens that had been sitting for three hours at an unknown temperature because the store's thermometers were broken, making the chickens highly susceptible to bacterial growth. Plus, adding in the time it takes to purchase the chicken and bring it home, it's likely that your chicken may easily exceed the safe time limit. To reduce the risk of food poisoning, always check that your rotisserie chicken has been stored properly, and make sure to reheat any leftovers to an internal temperature of 165°F (74°C) before consuming to kill off potential pathogens (per the USDA Food and Inspection Service).

Consuming a whole rotisserie chicken may carry an additional, often overlooked risk if the chicken was raised using antibiotics. According to a review in the Journal of Food Protection, poultry farmers often rely on antibiotics to speed up chicken growth and prevent poultry-related diseases. However, evidence suggests that there might be traces of these antibiotics left in chicken meat, which can contribute to antibiotic resistance in humans who consume them. Similar results were reported in an article published in Food Safety Magazine, which stated that antibiotics in livestock can negatively impact human health by promoting antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

AMR means that over time, some pathogens can no longer be killed by regular antimicrobials, such as antibiotics or antivirals, making infections in people harder to treat, which is a global cause of concern (via WHO). Per the review, while levels of antibiotic residue in chicken could be lowered through cooking, it is still not clear how much of it is safe for people to consume, and if you factor in the fact of eating an entire chicken, you might end up with a potentially dangerously high intake, which could wreak havoc to your gut microbiota. To reduce your risk of AMR, consider looking for an antibiotic-free rotisserie chicken option and consuming it in moderation.