Why a Calorie is not a Calorie

[Markcus]

I don’t know about you but I love when it when things are explained in a way that is crystal clear. When I was told that “a calorie was *NOT* a calorie”, I was completely lost.

I read up on the topic and learnt what was meant by that comment, I’m going to break it down so it’s easily understood.

I have a Mars Chocolate Bar @ 250 calories and a bowl of Oatmeal @ 300 calories, now which one would put more fat on your body?

Congratulation you are right !, the Mars bar is the correct answer… but why, if the bar is less calories?

To know why, you need to understand what the food does once it’s in the body. Now it’s time to dumb things down so we can understand easily. 

When to eat the candy bar it goes into your stomach where it gets broken down into a liquid. Then your body says “OMG this is pure energy I need to use this RIGHT NOW” so your body’s glycemic index spikes and calls in its army Insulin to carry the sugar throughout your body. Now here is the most important part, if you do not use the sugar energy right away, it is stored in your fat cells until you need it. “Which NEVER HAPPENS”

When you eat the Oatmeal it goes into your stomach where it gets broken down into a liquid. Then your body says “I think this might be enginery but I’m not so sure, it’s too *complex*”.  The liquid energy is then sent to your digestive system and liver, where it is processed and broken down even more. Your digestive system burns calories as its processing the food. By the time it hits your blood system it holds only a small fraction of its calories and very little will be stored as fat.

And that is why a calorie is not a calorie once it’s in your body, and that’s is the easy to understand version. Avoid all sugars because it makes you fat if you do not burn it off right away.

I hope this helps, please feel free to add me as a friend if you would like to. 

[WendyB]

This is great. Its also what we talked about at Weight Watchers this morning.

[emili · Accepted solution]

You are correct. And I am going to split hairs because I am a brat. A calorie is a calorie. The macro and micro nutrients in that calorie is what makes it better or worse. There was a study done - the Twinkie diet. Weight was lost (calorie is a calorie) health worsened (nutrients). If you and I eat the exact same calorie count (or what each of us needs to lose) but you eat high fiber, low fat, high vitamin food and I stick to pizza, we will both lose, but I will be the bigger loser in health. I think its awesome that you posted this- folks don't always understand the importance of nutrition.

[USAF-Larry]

You are correct, @emili.  By definition, a Calorie is the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water through 1°C.  It does not matter from what source that calorie originates, it is an exact amount of energy.   The nutrient content of that calorie may be totally different than the nutrient content of another calorie, but the definition of a calorie is fixed and does not change based on the nutrients, or lack of.

As you said, a lot of persons don't understand the importance of nutrition.  That is why balanced meals with portion control, and exercise are important in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.