True or False? A Calorie is a Calorie is a Calorie.

mitch16

johnnylakis wrote: »

celestlyn wrote: »

So it begs the question, is excess sugar calories better than excess fat calories? Or does the end result make no difference? I'm only asking because I wondered if there is less risk if I blow the diet and eat a candy bar instead of an extra slice of pizza. Not that I'm planning to do either one.

Don't call it a sugar calorie, call it a carb calorie. Candy bars have fat, so that's comparing bad to worse. Is a carb calorie better than a fat calorie? That depends. If it's bad fat (bacon) you risk high cholesterol. But there is good fat in lean chicken and nuts. If it's refined sugar (soda) you risk diabetes. But there is good sugar in fruit. It's all about the choices you make!

This thread is dying for a Mean Girls quote.

stevencloser

lorib642 wrote: »

prettykitty1515 wrote: »

Read it and weep, calorie counters.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Calorie-Myth-Exercise-Weight/dp/0062267337

One review ( quick google ) http://carbsanity.blogspot.com/2012/07/is-it-possible-smarter-science-worse.html

I like. Especially the part where they show that an updated version of one of the book's "sources" completely contradicts the whole premise.

mitch16

This thread is dying for a Mean Girls quote.

Gretchen: Why should Caesar just get to stomp around like a giant while the rest of us try not to get smushed under his big feet? Brutus is just as cute as Caesar, right? Brutus is just as smart as Caesar, people totally like Brutus just as much as they like Caesar, and when did it become okay for one person to be the boss of everybody because that's not what Rome is about! We should totally just STAB CAESAR!

Is butter a carb?

april32many

I've loved reading all of these posts and spent years arguing that a calorie was indeed NOT a calorie. Seems silly now. MACROS!!!!! You all are awesome and have given me something to chew that won't cause weight gain! WOoOoOoOOHOOOOoOoOoO!

jbpretty

I believe a calorie is a calorie however how and/or if your body absorbs them should maybe be taken into consideration. Saying all calories are the same is a bit misleading. I know (for me) what I eat affects how my body looks and how I feel (bloating, fatigue, etc.). Yup I lost weight eating whatever I wanted BUT to get the flatter tummy and lose those last few pounds, it was all about the type of food I was eating.

Here is a brief summery of an article I found in regards to this.

"In Brief. Almost every packaged food today features calorie counts in its label. Most of these counts are inaccurate because they are based on a system of averages that ignores the complexity of digestion.
Recent research reveals that how many calories we extract from food depends on which species we eat, how we prepare our food, which bacteria are in our gut and how much energy we use to digest different foods.
Current calorie counts do not consider any of these factors. Digestion is so intricate that even if we try to improve calorie counts, we will likely never make them perfectly accurate."

If you want to read the full article this is it. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/science-reveals-why-calorie-counts-are-all-wrong/

neanderthin

jbpretty wrote: »

I believe a calorie is a calorie however how and/or if your body absorbs them should maybe be taken into consideration. Saying all calories are the same is a bit misleading. I know (for me) what I eat affects how my body looks and how I feel (bloating, fatigue, etc.). Yup I lost weight eating whatever I wanted BUT to get the flatter tummy and lose those last few pounds, it was all about the type of food I was eating.

Here is a brief summery of an article I found in regards to this.

"In Brief. Almost every packaged food today features calorie counts in its label. Most of these counts are inaccurate because they are based on a system of averages that ignores the complexity of digestion.
Recent research reveals that how many calories we extract from food depends on which species we eat, how we prepare our food, which bacteria are in our gut and how much energy we use to digest different foods.
Current calorie counts do not consider any of these factors. Digestion is so intricate that even if we try to improve calorie counts, we will likely never make them perfectly accurate."

If you want to read the full article this is it. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/science-reveals-why-calorie-counts-are-all-wrong/

Digestion is part of the outside of the energy balance equation and where most people get side tracked because it's not as simple as calorie counting what you eat, we basically can be fairly accurate. Everyone's body will metabolize, digest and burn calories differently based on their lifestyle and genetics with individual hormonal balances thrown in to confuse the issue further and for this reason trying to examine how calories are utilized on the outside of the EBE is frustrating and why people believe a calorie isn't a calorie.....well, they're just confusing 2 totally different issues and this argument will never end, e.v.e.r.

ndj1979

a calorie is a unit of energy ..eat too much, gain weight; eat too little, lose weight; eat at maintenance and you maintain…

from a weight loss standpoint quality of calorie does not matter…

unless of course one has some kind of medical condition ..

and in…because these threads are always fun ...

snowflake930

Unless, and until you make sustainable changes in eating habits, chances are you will be in the huge majority of people that lose weight and gain it all (and for many people even more) back. "Good" calories vs "bad calories. Your nutrition goals depend on the choices of where you get the calories from, how you want to nourish your body. Personal choices and goals. Eating less calories than you burn for weight loss, and to maintain eat only the number of calories you need. Regular exercise contributes to overall good health.

paperpudding

snowflake930 wrote: »

Unless, and until you make sustainable changes in eating habits, chances are you will be in the huge majority of people that lose weight and gain it all (and for many people even more) back. "Good" calories vs "bad calories. Your nutrition goals depend on the choices of where you get the calories from, how you want to nourish your body. Personal choices and goals. Eating less calories than you burn for weight loss, and to maintain eat only the number of calories you need. Regular exercise contributes to overall good health.

I agree with most of what you say even if some of it is stating the obvious.
Yes, most people need to make sustainable changes in eating habits to have long term success, and what you need to eat in terms of types of foods depends on your personal
Needs and goals. Eating less than you burn for weight loss and the number of calories you need for maitenance, and exercise contributes to good health - no kidding.
-
- But good calories vs bad calories is just silly

snowflake930

- But good calories vs bad calories is just silly

Really? Silly?
What I mean is (maybe hard for some to grasp the concept) you can choose calories that give your body something that is good for your health vs calories that have very little nutritional value. Your choice, your body, your health, and your decision.

lorib642

FOOD: Any nutritious substance that is consumed in order to maintain and sustain life and growth and to repair and furnish energy.

NUTRIENT: A substance that provides nourishment essential for growth and the maintenance of metabolism and life.

CALORIE is the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree, I.E., a unit of energy-producing potential equal to this amount of heat contained in food.

some simple definitons I got via google (correct me if they are erroneous)

calorie does not equal nutrient. I am guessing you are talking about micronutrients- yes, some foods are more micronutirent dense than others. That is a different conversation

snowflake930

Just because 1 food might give your body than another does not mean one set of calories are good and the other bad. You can't just isolate one food and consider a diet unhealthy. The overall contents of your daily intake as a whole is what is truly important.

Semantics. I used the wrong words. Sorry it is so hard for some people to get my meaning. I am not as good as you are at choosing the correct words.
I should have said, calories that give your body better nutritional value vs ones that may have less nutritional value. Does this make it easier to understand?

hookilau

DiabolicalColossus wrote: »

This should prove to be its usual stupidly entertaining.

CJsf1t

I love these boards