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Sunday, December 13, 2009

Counting Calories Can Make You Fat! . (counting calories)

counting calories

All of us dieters do it; we pick up food in the super market and instantly look for the calorie count information. The majority of us rely on this information in order to aid us in making a correct choice. However, some experts are now saying that these calorie counts are extremely misleading and are in fact making us fatter.

This is because the way calorie counts are currently calculated is flawed and can in fact be 25 per cent out. Therefore, we could be taking in extra calories. Based on the fact that an extra 20 calories a day adds an extra 2lb of weight per year if we eat several foods with the wrong calorie count, this figure is multiplied. This theory goes a long way to explaining why we struggle to lose weight when counting calories and at times fail completely.

The current way calories are counted is based on tables that were put together 100 years ago by Wilbur Olin Atwater who was an agricultural chemist. He did this using a gadget called a bomb calorimeter. He burnt samples of food and measured the amount of energy released from the heat that was produced.

Atwater then estimated the amount of energy a body used up by calculating the energy of undigested food found in faeces and other bodily waste products. He then worked out that a gram of carbohydrates produced 4 calories, a gram of fat 9 calories and a gram of protein 9 calories. And it is from these figures that calorific calculations have been based on since then. It is only now that nutrition experts are beginning to question this method.

Many independent nutritionists are now beginning to advocate a new way of calculating calories. They now calculate that fat has 8.7 calories per gram, carbohydrates 3.8 calories and protein has 3.2 calories per gram. Looking at these figures you may be forgiven for thinking that the difference is minimal. However, these new figures show that we are underestimating the number of calories in some foods by as much as 25 per cent and depending on the type of food you are eating your body could be getting far more or less calories than you actually believe it to be consuming.

Nutritionists believe that the calorie count system should be updated to also provide values that show the true way we digest our food. This is because our bodies chew and mechanically break-down food. We do not incinerate food in the way Atwater did in his experiments and that produced the current calorie count system. This according to many nutritionists is why the system is so flawed.

Until this system is revised and updated the calorie count information printed on all food products is still useful in providing a guideline for the dieter. However, some foods will provide fewer calories from those that are stated on the label.

My advice to you would be to treat your diet as a whole in terms of food groups rather than counting calories. Make sure you get a balance of healthy foods with less salt, sugar and processed foods.

As a nutritionist and person who has struggled with weight loss and the achievement of that all important ideal physical shape, Jennifer offers invaluable advice and encouragement to anyone planning that life changing shape. Visit Jennifer's website http://www.guaranteedwaystolosebellyfat.com and receive a FREE REPORT on how to lose stubborn belly fat quickly and easily along with excess weight in general.

Jennifer's website http://www.guaranteedwaystolosebellyfat.com offers sound weight loss information and is aimed at helping people who are otherwise healthy yet moderately over weight. She cuts through many myths that are associated with the loss of belly fat and lets you in on some insider tips and tricks. She provides sound, scientific, time-tested advice on nutrition and exercise. Jennifer also offers a kick start program that should enable you to see results after one week in your battle with belly fat.

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