How important are calories in weight management
As long as you eat fewer calories than you burn, you’re bound to lose weight. However, some people insist that the type of food you eat matters much more than the number of calories it contains — both in terms of weight loss and long-term health. To maintain a stable weight, the number of calories you eat needs to match the number you expend. There are three main bodily processes that burn calories:
- Basic metabolism. Your body uses most of the calories you get from food to sustain basic functions, such as your heartbeat. This is commonly referred to as your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
- Digestion. Around 10–15% of the calories you eat is used to power digestion. This is known as the thermic effect of food (TEF) and varies based on the foods you eat.
- Physical activity. The leftover calories you get from your diet are meant to fuel your physical activity, including workouts and everyday tasks like walking, reading, and washing dishes.
When the number of calories you take in from food matches the number of calories you burn to sustain your metabolism, digestion, and physical activity, your weight will remain stable.
To lose weight, your “calories in” or the calories you consume need to remain fewer than your “calories out” or the calories burnt. Some factors can make calories seem irrelevant for weight loss, but research controlling for these factors shows that weight loss always requires a calorie deficit. Different foods can impact your hormones, hunger, feelings of fullness, and metabolism differently, regardless of the number of calories they contain. Thus, when it comes to your health, not all calories are created equal.
The amount of nutrients a food contains per calorie can vary greatly. Nutrient-dense foods provide higher amounts of vitamins, minerals, and beneficial compounds per gram compared with less nutrient-dense foods. Diets rich in nutrient-dense foods are consistently linked to a lower risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, and may even help you live longer. The calorie hypothesis/model fails to take nutrient density into account, which is a good reason to doubt its relevance when it comes to your health.
Some foods can make it easier for you to remain at a healthy weight, all while optimizing your overall health. Focusing solely on calories may cause you to miss the big picture.
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