Macros for products not totaling up to equal calories.

tectactoe
tectactoe Posts: 73 Member
in Food and Nutrition
For example. Original Fiber One cereal:

http://www.generalmills.com/~/media/Images/Brands/Nutritional_Images/Big_G/Fiber_One.ashx

1g fat --> 1*9 = 9 cals
25g carbs --> 25*4 = 100 cals
2g protein --> 2*4 = 8 cals

100 + 9 + 8 = 117 cals, yet this serving only has 60 calories as listed. My initial thought, are the carbs "from fiber" not counted towards the calories? I know fiber is indigestible, etc., but surely they aren't just void of caloric value...right?

Adding this food to your diet, at least with MFP, you can go over your macro goal & still be under calories.

I've seen this for a few other products, too. If I recall correctly, Vitamin Water Zero has 0 calories listed, yet the label shows 4g carbs (none of which are fiber in this case, obviously). What gives?

Replies

  • cajuntank
    cajuntank Posts: 924 Member
    http://caloriecount.about.com/do-fiber-calories-count-b565243
  • tectactoe
    tectactoe Posts: 73 Member
    I'm still kind of confused, though. Is that article insinuating that the 60 cal count is _correct_ then? Or is it an underestimate, because they neglected to "count" Fiber in the calories?
  • weird_me2
    weird_me2 Posts: 716 Member
    Manufacturers are allowed to discount the calories from fiber in the calorie totals, which is why you see that discrepancy. The theory is that you don't process the fiber so the calories aren't absorbed - whether that actually happens or not, I'm not sure. I do know that I've known people who did Weight Watchers and found that their losses really stalled when they added a bunch of high fiber/low calorie foods - like Fiber One, low carb tortillas, 100 calorie high fiber breads, etc. Personally, I don't eat most of those things, so if I find an odd product that has the discrepancy, I don't worry about it.

    I would suggest to just monitor it if you are consuming a lot of these types of things. If you notice that after a few weeks you aren't losing the weight like you should, it might be something to look at. Or, you could just create entries in the database and enter the calorie totals based on the macros and forget about it.

Categories