what's kcal compated to cal?

mamilel
mamilel Posts: 10
edited September 20 in Food and Nutrition
i'm having difficulty understanding. :blushing:

Replies

  • lunglady
    lunglady Posts: 526 Member
    It's the same thing.

    A kilocalorie is a unit of energy which is equivalent to a Calorie (notice the capital C). It is equal to 1000 calories (lowercase c).
    For the purpose of nutrition, we are always talking about the Calorie 9even though we have gotten out of the habit of capitalizing it.
  • dogmeat
    dogmeat Posts: 83
    Well, kcal, or kilo-calorie, is 1000 calories. Generally, everyone who talks about "calories" means kilo-calories. Some countries mark their product energy content as kcal, some use cal. Both mean the same thing. No marking I've ever ran into would use actual (gram) calories for food energy.
  • zimmazim
    zimmazim Posts: 1
    A calorie or "cal" in scientific terms is the amount of energy it takes to raise the temperature of 1cc (mL) of water by 1 degree celsius. A kilocalorie or kcal is equal to 1000 calories (or the temperature required to raise the temperature of 1 liter of water by 1 degree Celsius). However, in common language, the term "Calorie" or "calorie" refers to kilocalories. In other words, the number of "calories" listed on a nutrition label is technically the number of kcals.
  • mamilel
    mamilel Posts: 10
    gee! :blushing: thanks for the learning. at least my fear in kcal will be lost. before i don't want to pick up food in kcal coz i thought it means consuming a thousand calories. :laugh:
  • mamilel
    mamilel Posts: 10
    gee! :blushing: thanks for the learning. at least my fear in kcal will be lost. before i don't want to pick up food in kcal coz i thought it means consuming a thousand calories. :laugh:

    which means, if i pick up a food in 90kcal it only means 90 cal. am i right? :wink:
  • dogmeat
    dogmeat Posts: 83
    Well, 90 Cal. But yeah, you're right. Despite what people/organizations call their version of kilogram calorie, in nutrition it always means the same thing.
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