What is a calorie?

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Louiselesley
Louiselesley Posts: 166 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Who decided to sit down and say my banana has 100~ calories? How do they know that? How does one define a calorie?

Replies

  • Jellyphant
    Jellyphant Posts: 1,400 Member
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    My dumb self has always pictured a calorie as a floaty little fat bubble. -shrug- :indifferent:
  • cem2168
    cem2168 Posts: 205 Member
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    I believe a calorie is a measurement of energy? something like that?
  • moriaht
    moriaht Posts: 251 Member
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    I believe a calorie is a measurement of energy? something like that?

    Yep!
  • reese66
    reese66 Posts: 2,920 Member
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    http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie
  • ShunkyDave
    ShunkyDave Posts: 190 Member
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    A calorie is a measurement of energy. That's the simplest answer. When you're talking about how many cals something has, it's determined by burning the food down to its basic carbon. The scientists (I'm not one of them) figures the number by how long it took to burn down, or how hot it had to be, or something like that.

    Your body burns calories by spending energy (calories). Where the energy comes from (food stores, fat stores, muscle stores) determines how you lose weight.

    Your body gains weight by storing energy (calories). What else is in the food kinda determines how that's going to work (sugars, carbs, etc).

    Enough science-babble.
  • bluemist248
    bluemist248 Posts: 207 Member
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    I think its a measure of energy, I remember doing some science experiment during GCSEs involving timing the burning of a biscuit to measure its energy... to be honest, that was many years ago so I can't remember exactly.
    Think of a calorie as power rather than a fat bubble :tongue:
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
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    A kilocalorie is what your body burns to FUEL ATP - adenosine tri-phosphate that your body cells use to function. Macro nutrients such as proteins, fats, carbohydrates and sugars (and other such like) contain different densities of calories.

    ((sorry, mis-type!))
  • pauljsolie
    pauljsolie Posts: 1,024 Member
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    The amount of energy need to raise 1 gram (ml) of water 1 degree C.
  • ChRiStA_1983
    ChRiStA_1983 Posts: 380 Member
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    A calorie is the measurement of the amount of energy that it takes to heat 1 mL of water by 1 degree Centigrade.

    So basically it is also the quantity of food required to produce an amount of heat energy.
  • cassmsta
    cassmsta Posts: 75
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    http://kidshealth.org/kid/nutrition/food/calorie.html

    Puts it in pretty simple form.
  • 6heatherb6
    6heatherb6 Posts: 469 Member
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    It would have been quicker to google it!!! lol :bigsmile:

    OR

    weren't you listening in science class??? :blushing:

    A calorie is a measure of energy expenditure.....etc etc etc :yawn: :yawn:

    All the best in counting the ones that go into your mouth!!! It can be scary!!!:noway:

    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:
  • 6heatherb6
    6heatherb6 Posts: 469 Member
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    It would have been quicker to google it!!! lol :bigsmile:

    OR

    weren't you listening in science class??? :blushing:

    A calorie is a measure of energy expenditure.....etc etc etc :yawn: :yawn:

    All the best in counting the ones that go into your mouth!!! It can be scary!!!:noway:

    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

    Funny girl....I see you are from NI !!!! I'm Aussie but both my parents are from there!!!
  • 6heatherb6
    6heatherb6 Posts: 469 Member
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    A calorie is a measurement of energy. That's the simplest answer. When you're talking about how many cals something has, it's determined by burning the food down to its basic carbon. The scientists (I'm not one of them) figures the number by how long it took to burn down, or how hot it had to be, or something like that.

    Your body burns calories by spending energy (calories). Where the energy comes from (food stores, fat stores, muscle stores) determines how you lose weight.

    Your body gains weight by storing energy (calories). What else is in the food kinda determines how that's going to work (sugars, carbs, etc).

    Enough science-babble.
    Excellent and well put!!
    THANKS :flowerforyou:
  • Louiselesley
    Louiselesley Posts: 166 Member
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    THANK YOU!

    I did google it but the sciene junk confused me, but it was very simply put here :D


    and we totally didn't learn about calories in science class.



    (and woop! small world. ive barely met anyone with any connections to NI on here)

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