High-calorie foods can be a benefit or a bane, depending on how much nutrients they contain. Strength and endurance athletes, infants and soldiers in combat all need nutrient-dense, high-calorie foods to function. People who are obese or overweight need nutritious, lower-calorie foods to reduce body fat. Because high-calorie foods are easy to get access to in many cities in the world and many people have sedentary lifestyles, the obesity rate is rising in many countries in the world.
Definition
Food varies in energy content , weight and volume, which can be categorized into three groups: low-calorie, medium-calorie, and high-calorie. Each food has different combinations of carbohydrates, proteins and fats that contribute to the net caloric content. For example, 1 cup of 2 percent milk has 120 calories, 11.7 grams of carbohydrates, 8.1 grams of protein, and 4.7 grams of fat.
High-calorie foods contain much energy (more than 3 calories per gram) but weigh relatively little. These foods often are high in fat or concentrated with sugar, which contributes to the high energy content. Therefore, it is quite easy to eat a lot of such foods without realizing how many calories are consumed because high-calorie foods tend to provide little satiety.
Medium-calorie foods contains 1.5 to 3 calories per gram, and many packaged foods, meats and grain products belong to this category.
Low-calorie foods contain less energy (less than 1.5 calories per gram) because they usually contain much fiber and/or water, which give satiety. Many fruits, vegetables, whole grains, broths and legumes belong to this category.
Fatty Fried Foods
Since fat contains 9 calories per gram, it contributes the most amount of energy per unit of weight. Therefore, fried foods have a high fat content, provide little nutritional value and do not provide much satiety. Examples of this type of food include chips, pork rinds, bacon, fried batter, french fries, butter and fried calamari.
Packaged and Processed
Most packaged foods contain much fat and sugar to preserve the taste and integrity of the food. Also, many of these foods are dehydrated and have a high sodium content, reducing the nutritional value. These include boxed, canned, pickled and bagged items like cookies, graham crackers, chocolate, cream cheese, cakes and anything with added fats and sugars.
Alcohols
Although alcoholic beverages do not provide nutrients, they do contain 7 calories per gram, which is almost as much as fatty foods. Hard liquor, like whiskey, contains about four times the calories than an equal amount of beer. For example, 300 g of whiskey (about 12 shots) contain about 672 calories, while a 12 oz. can of regular beer (about 355 g) has about 160 calories.
Nutrient-Dense
Not all high-calorie foods are "bad." In fact, many foods provide high nutritional value and energy for those who are physically active or recovering from malnutrition. These include nuts and seeds, energy/protein bars, whole-wheat bread, fortified whole-grain cereals, raisins, beans (noncanned) and avocados.
Summary
Remember that even overeating healthy foods and not being active can lead to weight (fat) gain because you are eating more calories than you burn. The key to a healthier diet is moderation, which means that you monitor your portion sizes in each meal and avoid consuming too much.
References
- Persepctives in Nutrition, 5th Edition; Gordon Wardlaw, Margaret Kessel; 2002
- The World's Healthiest Foods, Essential Guide for the Healthiest Way of Eating; George Mateljan; 2006
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