Calories vs Nutritional Benefits

In any food plan prescribed, the balance between calories ingested and nutrients consumed is essential for maintaining anthropometric values as well as certain health parameters, since there are recommended daily doses of the different macronutrients and micronutrients.

When the goal is weight loss or weight gain, calorie intake (restriction or increase, respectively) is one of the main factors for success. Those who seek these goals sometimes look at calories indiscriminately and despite the fact that it is the key to achieving the goal, it is still important to ensure an adequate and balanced intake of Carbohydrates, Protein, Lipids, as well as Vitamins and Minerals, so that the process does not harm the overall health.

In this sense, it is important to compare different equivalent foods, in which the nutritional benefit does not always accompany the desired calories. Let’s look at some examples:

*Values presented per 100 g of edible portion, according to the Food Composition Table of the National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge.

By comparing different types of bread, we can see that wheat bread is the one with the highest number of calories, protein and Sodium. On the other hand, whole wheat bread has the highest content of fibre, Phosphorus, Magnesium and Zinc. Since cereals are one of the main sources of fibre and minerals such as Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Zinc, choosing refined bread over the wholemeal option means more calories and less nutritional value, within the parameters mentioned, and therefore may not bring the desired health benefits, regardless of the final objective.

Another situation is when the food goes through a process, for example cutting, grinding, heating, cooking or other, in which the calories may no change much, but there may be differences in micronutrients.

*Values presented per 100 g of edible portion, according to the Food Composition Table of the National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge.

In the example of the orange, the main differences appear in the fibre value, as well as in the vitamin value, especially in Vitamin A. In other words, although it is the same food, the fact that it undergoes a transformation also changes the availability of certain nutrients in its constitution.

In this sense, according to the desired objective, it is important to take into account the calories and the balance between the energy consumed and the energy spent throughout the day. It is also pertinent to analyse changes in the nutritional composition in terms of macronutrients and micronutrients, as in specific situations these are small details that will make all the difference.

Nutritionist, Jacinta Mendes
3341N