Negative Calorie Foods – Is It Possible?
You would expect everything you eat to give you energy, and if you eat too much, the excess calories will turn into fat. Normally that is the case. However, there is a myth that some foods burn more calories through digestion than they provide after digestion. The myth basically says you can lose weight by eating lots of negative calorie foods. Time Magazine published an article debunking the negative calorie food myth. It turns out there are no negative calorie foods, unless of course you try to eat a 2 x 4 plank of wood – in which case you might burn more calories trying to chew it like a termite.
This topic was something I was curious myself. I used to eat two apples a day when I was trying maintaining my weight as a professional cyclist. I also incorporated lots of fruits and vegetables into my daily meals and it really kept me lean.
Fruits and vegetables have a high water and fiber content to them, so they do actually take more energy to digest than processed foods. Also, fruits and vegetables have a way lower calorie to volume ratio than most of the other foods we might eat. So incorporating lots of fruits and vegetables into your diet can help satiate your appetite. I’ve heard many nutrition experts say that its almost impossible to be obese from a diet of fruits and vegetable, and I can’t help but to believe it.
But even more important than the caloric value – fruits and vegetables offer so many vitamins and minerals that are essential to our bodies. It certainly wouldn’t hurt to add these natural health-boosting gems to your meals. Here is one article that helps you do so.
Do you have advice to help others add fruits and vegetables to their diets? Please share your suggestions below.
