Is Calorie Counting For Weight Loss A Scam? Learn what a DIETITIAN does and what YOU can too..
Channel: Maria Lucey-Dietitian & Nutrition Educator
Date: 2024-02-19

If losing weight is on your mind, might it be time to start calorie counting again? Well, this popular and common approach may not be as accurate as we have all been led to believe.
I'm a dietitian, and in this video, I reveal the many nuances behind calorie counting. Learn the approach that I take with my clients and what tends to work best for both health and weight management. 

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https://www.marialuceydietitian.com/dietician-nutrition/calorie-counting-weight-loss/

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This content is for educational and entertainment purposes only. Always speak to a healthcare provider about your unique health needs. Please use this video (as with all of my videos) as educational, not as unique recommendations. This description contains affiliate links. 

⏰TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
01:07 Calorie Comparisons
01:22 When does a dietitian count calories?
01:51 Relationship with food and disordered eating
02:25 dieting cycle
02:45 Has calorie counting worked for you?
03:02 What is diet-induced thermogenesis
03:54 Thermic effect of protein
05:08 Thermic effect of alcohol
05:34 What is caloric availability
05:47 The sweetcorn test
07:07 How are calories calculated?
08:00 Calories in almonds
09:03 Calories in processed food vs whole food
10:24 Gut microbiome and calorie consumption
10:52 relationship with food and overeating
11:23 The accuracy of calories on labels
11:51 Calorie-controlled meal plans
12:12 Weight loss and sustainable change
12:45 Should you count calories? Pros and cons

Calorie Counting Blog Post: (Full Article Available on the website)

It is true that we need to eat fewer calories to lose weight, BUT calorie counting can be highly inaccurate. Understanding the nuances will help you know when to take calories seriously and when to take them with a pinch of salt.

Yes, in some cases, calorie counting can work and can be a useful tool. But there are a few reasons why it’s not an approach that, as a dietitian, I often recommend.

Clearly, calories matter to a certain extent. For instance, 200 calories of chocolate is twice as many as 100 calories of chocolate. Similarly, 200 grams of chocolate is twice as much as 100 grams of chocolate.

But would you compare 200 calories of chocolates to 200 calories of broccoli?

Not really.

...
Calorie Counting and Disordered Eating
The main reason I don’t recommend calorie counting routinely is because when people start counting calories, it can completely and utterly destroy their relationship with food.

Food is not just a number. It is a delicious thing that not only helps us stay alive but also keeps us nourished and healthy. Counting calories can easily lead to disordered eating habits, and it can happen so quickly that the individual may not even realize it.

Having a healthy relationship with food is extremely important. It's not something to be overlooked. Doing anything that may jeopardise this relationship needs to be carefully considered beforehand. If you are working with a dietitian, they can help you decide whether or not this is an approach that you should consider.

Diet-Induced Thermogenesis

Are you counting calories as they appear on your plate? Or are you counting calories when they've gone into your body and are digested and ready to be used?

It takes energy or calories to break down and use every food you eat. The body needs to ingest, eat, digest, break down, and metabolize the food you eat into something that can be used by the body. This all requires calories. So, it takes calories to break down foods and use them.
This whole process is called “diet-induced thermogenesis” because it is an effort for your body, and it makes you hotter doing the work.

Protein requires the most energy for the body to break down and metabolise. It’s a more in-depth process, taking a bit longer and therefore using up more energy. Fat requires the least amount of energy for our body to digest and is easily utilised by the body.

But are we going to look at each food we eat and readjust the calories based on the amount of energy our body will need to use to break it down? No, of course not; it's not practical and very few people will have time for that. In general, in healthy people with a mixed diet, this “diet-induced thermogenesis” represents about 10% of the total amount of energy ingested over 24 hours. So, in other words, 10% of the calories we eat are burned off digesting the food we eat in a mixed diet.