Calories and protein are essential nutrients for the body's functions. Not consuming adequate calories will stop protein from working at its full capacity in the body. A total of 1,500 calories is a low calorie diet and for most people, will lead to weight loss. Certain conditions require counting calories and increasing protein in the diet.
Function
High protein, low calorie diets are useful for several conditions. Diabetic diets require counting calories to control blood glucose levels. Often, the diet corresponds with insulin regimens. In cases of illness or injury, higher protein foods are needed to improve healing time. Protein is essential to maintaining the integrity of the gastrointestinal tract. A dietitian can recommend the desired calorie amount based on the individual and her condition.
Food Groups
The average calorie content and protein content for the individual foods within each group can be used to define the food groups. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there are five food groups, grains, fruit, vegetables, dairy, and meat and beans. Fruits, vegetables and grains are generally lower in calories. Dairy, meat and beans contain complete essential protein. To know the exact amounts of each nutrient, it is necessary to read nutrition fact labels.
Calories
Counting calories is essential to maintaining a low calorie diet. In general, one serving of grains, starchy vegetables and fruit contain about 75 to 100 calories. Non starchy vegetables, such as broccoli and carrots, contain about 25 calories per serving. A dairy serving can contain anywhere from 90-150 calories per serving, based on fat content; lower fat milk products will have fewer calories. One ounce of lean meat contains 55 calories and one ounce or high fat meat contains 100 calories. A typical serving of meat is 3 ounces.
Protein
The average person needs 40-60 grams of protein per day. To maintain a high protein diet, consume complete protein sources more often. Complete protein comes from meat and meat products. Choosing lean meat cuts will help to keep a low calorie diet and maintain high protein intakes. Most meats and fish contain 7 grams of protein per ounce. Eggs contain 6 grams protein per large egg. Milk contains 8 grams of protein per cup. Cottage cheese is exceptionally high in protein, containing 12 grams per serving.
Considerations
This diet is most useful for diabetics in generally healthy condition with no other injuries. Obese people with injuries should not limit their calories because it may limit healing time. For any diet, exercise enhances the benefit and has many other beneficial influences. Check with your doctor to see how much exercise is recommended.
References
- Krause's Food and Nutrition Therapy; L.K. Mahan & Sylvia Escott Stump; 2006
- USDA MyPyramid
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