Most dieters understand that it is sensible to limit the quantity of fat grams in their daily diet. The dietary reference intake quantity for an adult ranges from twenty percent to 35%[i] of daily calories; or around forty four to fifty five grams every day[1] Since one slice of coconut cream pie might have 27 grams of fat, and a measly tablespoon of French salad dressing has eight grams of fat[ii], it's not surprising to note more and more folks checking food labels and “passing over” an order of greasy onion rings [2] as they try to lose, or maintain, inches and weight.
However, the persistent avoidance of fat – even of healthy unsaturated fat – is creating a troubling state of affairs for lots of} dieters. Rather than losing pounds when they go “fat free”, they are really gaining weight. Expecting to shed pounds by going a "fat-free" diet, they're stunned to learn that they have really added pounds instead.
Many people on the path to weight loss overlook – or merely do not know – that the words “fat free” don't additionally mean “calorie free”. Consequently, many individuals ingest an excessive amount of “fat free” food, believing that it will not add weight, since, alas, it is dubbed “fat free”. Yet it's the calories in these fat-free foods that cause the weight gain; not the fat grams themselves. [iii]
A single gram of fat contains 9 calories, which is more than double the number of calories in a gram of protein or carbohydrate. Thus, mathematically speaking, an eater will consume two times as many protein or carbohydrate grams than fat grams, and achieve the same caloric intake. Since many high-fat foods contain an excessive amount of fat grams – like french fries – it's become a staple of dieting knowledge to scale back fat intake and avoid such oily, greasy foods[3].
Nevertheless it needs repeating that the explanation to avoid fat-rich foods is not because of the word “fat”; it's due to the fact that each and every fat gram contains a scale-tipping 9 calories. It warrants repeating that not eating foods that are rich in fat isn't only because they contain "fat"; it's for the reason that each and every gram of fat contains a massive nine calories. In other words, the weight-conscious reason for not eating excess fat grams is because it leads to a higher caloric intake.
Dieters who neglect to realize this basic nutritional reality – that weight gain is about calories and not about fat grams themselves – fail to realize, and typically at their eventual dismay, how the body actually gains and loses weight.|In order to comprehend the manner in which the body loses weight, it's vital for eaters to comprehend one basic nutritional fact - that gaining or shedding weight isn't about the fat grams themselves, it's about the calories.
The everyday adult American male diet calls for 2000 calories per day because this the average number of calories which are collectively used and burned (i.e. converted into energy) by the body each day. As an example, an average male dieter who consumes 1800 calories every day can “save” 200 calories per day. As thirty-five hundred calories in each pound, the dieter in this scenario can “save” thirty-six hundred calories over the course of 18 days (18 x 200 calories). This interprets into a loss of one pound. Similarly, if this dieter consumes an excess 200 calories per day, a pound of weight can be gained in 18 days.
A dieter who isn't attentive to this mathematical formula may indeed avoid fat altogether and eat, as an example, six tablespoons of “fat free” marsh-mallow topping per day; believing that this is not a part of the weight gain equation, since it's labeled as “fat free”. This isn't false advertising, as fat free butterscotch topping contains no fat grams. But, fat free butterscotch topping delivers 103 calories per 2 tablespoon serving[iv].
If this dieter is adhering to a diet regimen of forty four fat grams per day -- and does not keep track of calories -- then he will simply not grasp that in these six mere tablespoons are a considerable 309 calories; or 15% of the entire daily caloric intake for a 2000 calorie/day diet.
Of course, a dieter might subsist entirely on “fat free” foods, and simply exceed their target daily caloric intake by their second meal of the day. These excess calories are clearly not deriving from fat grams; but they're coming from another source, most in all probability carbohydrates.
Again, the message here that many people trying to lose weight don't receive from the advertising and marketing media is that fat grams in and of themselves do not necessarily “cause” weight gain. Rather, fat grams contribute to the total caloric intake, and they ought to be counted alongside carbohydrates and proteins.
Adding an unnecessary layer of complexity here is that many “healthy foods”, like energy bars, contain an excessive quantity of calories. A chocolate chip Energy Bar™, for example, contains 230 calories; which is truly only 40 calories less than a Butterfinger™ candy bar[v]. Unfortunately, since the Energy Bar contains 2 grams of fat and is therefore “low fat”, some dieters allow themselves to eat several every day; and pack on 230 calories each time they do, despite the very fact that virtually none of these calories come from fat. It won't matter; the person watching their diet will still gain weight if his or her daily caloric intake limit is surpassed. Dieters who assume yogurt-covered bars to be “healthier” also are mistaken; the yogurt-berry Balance Bar contains two hundred calories per serving, regardless of the actual fact that only twenty five percent of the calories come from its six grams of fat.
But, there are more and more dependable nutritional supplement products available which are engineered to be both low fat/fat-free and low-calorie. These foods will benefit dieters when they are shedding weight, and additionally in the vulnerable period after the pounds have been lost. Unfortunately, several terribly well meaning dieters who have made remarkable strides and sacrifices to lose weight regain it within the first one or two “post-diet” months. Whereas a number of things influence whether or not a dieter will regain weight, including setting and genetics, one major cause is that dieters are not provided with low-fat, low-calorie, and flavorful food sources once they've reached their target weight. They therefore return to old eating habits, and therefore the unwanted pounds return within only a few weeks.
However, as mentioned above in this article, there are intelligent nutritional supplements on the market that do fill this void, which ethically serve dieters – and post-dieters – with foods that they have to stay healthy, and prevent weight gain. For the sake of current and future dieters who are going to struggle with misleading “fat free” promotion, it's hoped that such intelligent corporations, and their merchandise, quickly become the norm of the future, rather than the exception of today.
[1] Fat grams contain 9 calories each.
[2] 3 grams of fat per onion ring!
[3] As briefly noted above, many dieters fail to realize that there are healthy unsaturated fats that the body requires; the body cannot produce fat on its own, it must receive it through diet. Yet even unsaturated fat grams contain 9 calories each, and so the understanding that fats should be severely limited holds true.
[ii] Source: “Fat Content of Foods”. Weight Control Infocenter.
http://holisticonline.com/Remedies/weight/weight_table-fat-content-of-foods2.htm
[iii] : “Watching Fat vs. Calories”. Good Housekeeping/iVillage.
http://magazines.ivillage.com/goodhousekeeping/diet/nutrition/qas/0,,284558_291893,00.html?arrivalSA=1&cobrandRef=0&arrival_freqCap=1&pba=adid=13272851
[iv] Source: “Fat Free vs. Regular Calorie Comparison”. US Food and Drug Administration.
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/chrt_calcomp.html
[v] Source: “Fueling Up with Energy Bars”. Healthcentral.com
http://www.healthcentral.com/FitorFat/FitorFatFullText.cfm?ID=34334&storytype=CBTips
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About Protica Research
Founded in 2001, Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) is a nutritional research firm specializing in the development of capsulized foods (dense nutrition in compact liquid and food forms). Protica manufactures Profect (www.profect.com), IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and more than 100 other brands in its GMP-certified, 250,000 square foot facility. One area of specialty is the manufacturing of Medicare-approved, whey protein liquid for bariatric surgery patients.
You can learn more about Protica at www.protica.com - Copyright - Protica Research
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