Calorie Density: A Common Sense Approach To Sound Nutrition

Calorie Density: A Common Sense Approach To Sound Nutrition, by Jeff Novick, MS, RD, is this weeks reading in the Hypnosis Health Info Article Library. Jeff teaches us that, “Calorie density, is the simplest easiest approach to healthy eating.” Slender For Life™ Hypnosis for weight loss makes plant based eating easy and enjoyable. Whenever hungry, eat until you are comfortably full. Don’t starve and don’t stuff yourself.

Calorie Density: A Common Sense Approach To Sound Nutrition

By Jeff Novick, MS, RD

Calorie density, is the simplest easiest approach to healthy eating. It is easy to understand and follow and is the most common sense approach to sound nutrition. In addition, by following the principles of calorie density, you will also meet all your other nutritional needs including vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, essential fats, etc. The basic principles of calorie density are simple and outlined below.

The Calorie Density Approach (Highly Recommended)

Calorie density is simply a measure of the amount of calories in a given weight of food, most often expressed as calories per pound.  A food high in calorie density provides a large amount of calories in a small weight of food, whereas a food low in calorie density has much fewer calories for the same weight of food. Therefore, for the same number of calories, one can consume a larger portion of a food lower in calorie density than a food higher in calorie density.  On a day-to-day basis, people generally eat a similar amount of food, by weight.  Therefore, choosing foods with a lower calorie density allows us to consume our usual amount of food (or more) while reducing our caloric intake.

Foods low in calorie density also tend to be higher in satiety so by consuming foods lower in calorie density, one can fill up on much fewer calories without having to go hungry.  In addition, the foods that are lower in calorie density (fruits, veggies, starchy vegetables, intact whole grains and legumes) are also the foods highest in nutrient density.  Therefore, by following a diet lower in calorie density, one also automatically consumes a diet higher in nutrient density.

Principles of Calorie Density

• Hunger & Satiety: Whenever hungry, eat until you are comfortably full. Don’t starve and don’t stuff yourself.
• Sequence Your Meals: Start all meals with a salad, soup and/or fruit.
• Don’t Drink Your Calories: Avoid liquid calories. Eat/chew your calories, don’t drink or liquify them. Liquids have little if any satiety so they do not fill you up as much as solid foods of equal calories.
• Dilution is the Solution: Dilute Out High Calorie Dense Foods/Meals: Dilute the calorie density of your meals by filling 1/2 your plate (by visual volume) with intact whole grains, starchy vegetables and/or legumes and the other half with vegetables and/or fruit.
• Be Aware of the Impact of Vegetables vs Fat/Oil: Vegetables are the lowest in calorie density while fat and oil are the highest. Therefore, adding vegetables to any dish will always lower the overall calorie density of a meal while adding fat and oil will always raise the overall calorie density of a meal
• Limit High Calorie Dense Foods: Limit (or avoid) foods that are higher in calorie density (dried fruit, high fat plant foods, processed whole grains, etc). If you use them, incorporate them into meals that are made up of low calorie dense foods and think of them as a condiment to the meal. For example, add a few slices of avocado added to a large salad, or a few walnuts or raisins added in a bowl of oatmeal and fruit.

NOTE: For those who really do not like numbers.

To make it even easier, I can take the numbers completely out and it still makes sense and works.

Eat Freely:
(Foods Low In Calorie Density)
Fruits and veggies

Eat Relatively Large Portions Without Concern:
(Foods Moderate In Calorie Density)
Starchy Veggies, Intact Whole Grains and Legumes

Limit These Foods
(Foods High In Calorie Density)
Breads, Bagels, Dry Cereals, Crackers, Tortilla’s, Dried Fruit

Extremely Limit These Foods:
(Foods Very High In Calorie Density)
Nuts, Seeds, Oils, Solid Fats, Junk Foods

The beauty of calorie density is that it frees us from all these numbers and having to count, portion weigh and/or measure anything. So, don’t get caught up in the numbers and for those who do not like numbers, just understand the principle.

Read Calorie Density: A Common Sense
Approach To Sound Nutrition

As Jeff says, “Foods low in calorie density also tend to be higher in satiety so by consuming foods lower in calorie density, one can fill up on much fewer calories without having to go hungry.” Controlling your appetite is easy when you think calorie density. Foods that are lower in calorie density (fruits, veggies, starchy vegetables, intact whole grains and legumes) are also the foods highest in nutrient density. Not only does plant based food taste delectable, you feel totally satisfied.

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