What are the calories?

Calories

The Calorie is the unit of thermal energy that is equivalent to the amount of heat required to position the temperature of one gram of water in a degree centigrade from 14.5 to 15.5 degrees at normal pressure.

The symbol that is used to denominate it is Cal. When treating a form to quantify the energy.

Calories and nutrients

Calories are the product of all the great nutrients that every person requires to obtain energy; once the calorie is separated from the nutrients, they become Kilocalories.

Calories are essential for the body to efficiently perform its bodily functions (walking, speaking, breathing, etc.) so that the tissues develop and renew so that the process of digestion of food is satisfactory and to generate balance in body temperature.

It is important to point out that the excess of calories can be negative for the health because it would produce the appearance of the obesity, this happens because the calories that are others, ends up being stored and transformed into fat, generating harmful consequences for the health.

Also, to have a range of possibilities which are the most appropriate foods to consume according to the needs of the moment.

In case you are fulfilling a diet or those that we need to balance the food plan.

Calorie Intake

It is advisable that the person ingests between 1,200 to 1,900 calories daily, of course, this will depend on the activity that the person exercises, as well as age and sex.

It is very important to know the caloric contributions of each food that is consumed since this will depend on staying healthy and fit.

Not all foods provide the same calories. For example, fats contribute 9 kilocalories, carbohydrates 4 and proteins 4 kilocalories.

It can be said then that most of what is consumed has calories: from a piece of salmon to some cucumber wheels.

In the same way, we must be attentive to those calories considered as "bad" or empty calories.

These are the ones found in foods with little nutritional value, such as the famous "junk foods" or alcoholic beverages and sugary drinks.

Do not forget, keep an exercise routine, as this will allow you to burn all those calories that are left over in the body.

The macronutrients

Calories are the product of the macronutrients that living beings need to obtain energy.

Once out of these nutrients, the calories will be transformed into kilocalories or thousands of calories.

Just as cars need gasoil, naphtha or gas to walk, you, me, all the beings we breathe, we need the energy to survive in this complicated world and of course, to develop the rest of our vital functions.

This will not be obtained in any other way than, feeding us, that is, converting the chemical energy of food into caloric energy through its release with digestion and its application in the maintenance of metabolism.

Calories for an adult

The basic and elementary need for the minimum maintenance of the metabolism in an adult is about 1000 calories, but, from there, everything will depend on the physical and mental activity of each individual (the brain is an avid consumer of calories, which it should not be forgotten in those who perform fundamentally intellectual tasks).

When an organism consumes fewer calories than those incorporated with food, this energy accumulates as a reserve in the form of fatty tissue.

On the other hand, when more calories are consumed than those that enter, those fat reserves are degraded initially and, in serious situations, proteins begin to be consumed as well.

Therefore, to achieve a proper balance, it requires both a consumption of the right amount of calories and the performance of a physical and mental activity, with the goal of maintaining a healthy life.

Importance of calories

The notion of calorie is important to explain the functioning of the food processor. Living beings need the energy to survive;

This energy is obtained from food. Food, therefore, is the most relevant source of energy for living organisms.

The energy obtained from the nutrients found in food is converted into calories or, more precisely, into kilocalories (that is, thousands of calories). The body uses calories in diseases, stress situations and metabolism processes.

The obsession with calories

The number of calories present in a food must be specified on its label.

This amount is responsible for reporting what is the energy value of the food and is very important both to maintain the ideal weight and figure and to try to recover them.

When preparing a dish, it is essential to differentiate between the different types of ingredients, use the appropriate proportion of each and choose the best cooking mode.

Regardless of the weight problems, many people have developed a kind of obsession with regard to the caloric content of food.

The main reason is that at present there is access to a lot of information about the effects of meals on health, as well as their relationship with certain chronic noncommunicable diseases, among which are diabetes, hypertension, and Cardiovascular disorders.

Nutritional properties

Understanding the nutritional properties of food is essential to guide our diet in a healthy direction and to make this a way of life and not a simple temporary practice.

To understand each of the values indicated in the packages, jars, and wrappings it is highly advisable to ask for help from a nutritionist.

Many times, due to lack of information and tools to understand the energy value of foods, they are judged wrongly and more calories are consumed than those thoughts.

A clear example is to avoid eating a chocolate cookie and replace it with twenty cereals.

It is very important to know the distribution of the so-called macronutrients in each food and the amount of calories per gram they provide: carbohydrates and proteins, 4; fats, 9; and alcohol, 7.

To facilitate the comparison of the caloric content of various products, it is always calculated based on 100 grams of the food in question.

Water

The more water a food contains, the less energy it brings; In the case of vegetables, for example, almost 95% of their weight is wet.

On the contrary, products such as bread and nuts have a high energy value, given the small proportion of liquid present in their composition.

Fats, on the other hand, are the nutrients that add the most calories; This is the case of oils, butter, and margarine, among others.

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