Calorie

From ArticleWorld

A calorie is the unit of measurement used to measure energy. Although it has been replaced by the joule in many fields, it is still commonly used to measure the amount of energy obtained from food.

Calories and nutrition

Dietitians suggest weight loss by increasing exercise (thus the expenditure of energy) and reducing calorie consumption.

In many governments, it is required that manufacturers label the calorie content of their food and beverage products to help consumers track their energy (calorie) intake. The energy values are typical given according to traditional serving sizes.

Nutritional calories aren't measured energy amounts but are rather calculated with food consumption in mind. The method for calculating these means uses conventional conversion factors and approximate the average density of energy in a variety of food.

Recommended calorie consumption

It is suggested that young adult males consume 2,500 kcal and young adult females consume 2,000.

Naturally, these values should be adjusted according to activity levels and age: children, older people and non-active people should consume fewer calories while physically active people should consume more.

Interesting facts

• Unicode has a symbol that it uses to represent “cal.” However, it is a legacy code that works with older code pages in some Asian languages. Therefore, it is not suggested that it be used today.

• A ton of TNT is equal to one billion thermochemical calories. However, the actual value, a megaton, of energy liberated from an explosion of a ton of TNT is significantly greater.

• In order to lose 1 pound (450g) of fat, one must burn 3,500 kcal, or create a 3,500 kcal deficit in the diet.