The basics of Food Calories

A calorie is a unit of measurement or a unit of energy, which means calories measure the energy stored in food. many foods and drinks have calories which will vary in number based on the food type; the number of calories refers to how much energy the body could acquire from eating or drinking. For example foods, like peanuts, can contain up to 427 calories per half cup. The body needs calories for energy; however they must be consumed in proper portions so that the body is able to burn them off. Excess calories can lead to weight increase as the body stores unused fuel from calories as fat cells for future famine use. The more calories a person eats, the more energy the body must burn in order to maintain a healthy weight.

Calorie counting is used as a simple way of managing weight. By monitoring caloric intake, persons can adhere to their daily caloric requirements easily by counting the calories in foods eaten. The nutrition facts label found on packaged foods is one way learning of the number of calories the food contains. The label may also describe the components of the food, which is how many grams of carbohydrate, protein, and fat it contains. One gram of carbohydrate will have 4 calories, protein 4, and fat 9 calories. A fat calorie has the same amount of stored energy as a protein or a carbohydrate calorie. Alcohol is also high in energy and supplies 7 calories per gram. Foods that are high in fat are usually high in calories.

Once you are able to determine how many grams are in a food, you can compute the total calories by multiplying the number of grams by the number of calories in a gram of that food component. For example, if a pizza has 75 grams of fat, 675 calories are from fat (75 grams X 9 calories per gram). One thing to note is that all packaged food labels contain the calorie count for a "portion"; it is recommended that you employ a food calorie chart to compare with food labels.

any movement made by the body involves the energy fuel it gets from calories; different bodily functions use different amounts of fuel. Calorie Charts provide information on calorie, carbohydrate, fat and protein content for different types of food. The use of a food calorie chart along with a healthy diet will definitely maintain a balanced lifestyle. A balanced diet is a daily food plan that delivers the minimum necessary calories with the utmost healthy results.

The following fast food calorie chart can be used as a guide:

Fast Food Calorie Chart

Fast Food
Amount
Calories
Cheeseburger
Large
610
Cheeseburger
Regular
320
Hamburger
Large
520
Hamburger
Regular
275
Fish, Battered|Fried
1 serving
210
Chicken, Fried, Dark Meat
2 pieces
430
Chicken, Fried, Wing|Breast
2 pieces
495
Chicken Nuggets,
Plain 6
300
Sausage, Fried|Battered
1
100
Onion Rings
8
175
Fries
Large
360
Fries
Regular
240
Hash Browns
1|2 cup
150
Corn Dog
1
460
Hot Dog
Regular
240
Hot Dog with Chili
1
325
Dressing - Caesar
1 pkt
160
Dressing - French
1 pkt
160
Dressing - Ranch
1 pkt
230
Pancakes, Butter & Syrup
3
520
Desserts - Brownie
1
245
Desserts - Sundae, Caramel
1
305
Desserts - Sundae, Hot Fudge
1
290
Desserts - Sundae, Strawberry
1
270
Desserts - Apple Pie
1 serving
260
Shakes - Chocolate, Strawberry & Vanilla
Regular
360