Calories
- What are Calories?
It is a unit of measurement of the amount of energy present in the food one takes. Every food that we consume has a certain amount of calories present in it that are used by the body to do any work. If one consumes more calories than what is required, then the additional calories are stored resulting in weight gain.
- What are the Sources of Calories?
Though every food that we take contains calories in some quantity, the paramount concern should be the amount of calories that one intakes in a day. Every product mentions the calories present on their covers; carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram, fat contains 9 calories per gram, protein has 4 calories per gram and alcohol has 7 calories per gram.
- How much Calories should I take?
This is quite a generalised question since the answer to this depends on a number of factors like one’s gender, height, weight, activity level and metabolism. Hence, calorie intake is specific to every person.
| Gender | Age (years) | Sedentaryb | Moderately Activec | Actived |
| Child | 2-3 | 1,000 | 1,000-1,400 | 1,000-1,400 |
| Female | 4-8 9-13 14-18 19-30 31-50 51+ |
1,200 1,600 1,800 2,000 1,800 1,600 |
1,400-1,600 1,600-2,000 2,000 2,000-2,200 2,000 1,800 |
1,400-1,800 1,800-2,200 2,400 2,400 2,200 2,000-2,200 |
| Male | 4-8 9-13 14-18 19-30 31-50 51+ |
1,400 1,800 2,200 2,400 2,200 2,000 |
1,400-1,600 1,800-2,200 2,400-2,800 2,600-2,800 2,400-2,600 2,200-2,400 |
1,600-2,000 2,000-2,600 2,800-3,200 3,000 2,800-3,000 2,400-2,800 |
- What can happen if I Dont take Calories?
Though low-calorie intake is recommended for people with obesity, dramatically reducing your routine calorie intake could have some side effects because your body is not accustomed to this lower intake. The main problems that arise because of low-calorie intake are malnutrition, slower metabolism and physical changes.
You may also like to check on the following, in case, you are unknowingly missing a vital nutrient in your diet that can have significant impact on your kids or your health:
Beginner’s guide to:
| Vitamins | Carbohydrates | Fats | Iron |
| Proteins | Fibre | Trans Fat | Zinc |
| Cholesterol | Folic Acid | Calcium | Sodium |
| Chromium | Magnesium | Selenium |