Well, sure you can Jack. It is not that calories are bad, it is just that if you want to lose weight, you’ll need to control the amount you are taking in so that you won’t have as much to work off.
Foods that are lower in calories but rich in nutrients are the healthiest for you. Think whole-grain breads and cereals, rice, beans, vegetables, and fruits. The opposite of this are foods high in calories and low in nutrients. You’ve heard the term, “empty calories,” which basically means calories without nutrients. Alcohol is an example of this, as is candy and sugary foods.
What exactly is a calorie anyhow? Since they show up near the top of every nutrition label, it seems like they might be some sort of nutrient. But they are not. A calorie is just a specific unit of heat.
That’s important because heat is generated when your body processes food and the heat generates energy. So calories, in essence, give you the energy you need to be active. Where the problems start is if you take in a too many of them and then don’t complete the other side of the deal, being active and burning them off.
The FDA in 2006 introduced the general guide to calories, which says a single-food item with 40 calories is low calorie, one with 100 calories is moderate calorie, and one with 400 calories is high calorie.
Try entering a food in the search box at the Nutrition Data website. It displays the nutrition facts for an enormous number of food and beverage items just as it would appear if on the side of the package. And it gives you many choices for serving sizes so you can get more accurate. It also includes some restaurant food such as McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, Krispy Kreme, Pizza Hut, Starbuck’s, and Taco Bell – which hopefully you won’t need!
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