Empty calorie foods lack nutritional value, such as candy bars with refined sugar and saturated fats. Some seemingly nutritious foods, like fruit punch with added sugar, also have added ingredients that take away from their nutritional value. Enriched flour is a common source of empty calories. A long-term diet of mostly empty calories can lead to health problems.
Empty calories are what are considered to have foods with low nutritional value. For example, a candy bar is said to be an empty calorie food, since its calories come mainly from refined sugar and saturated fat. Refined sugar refers to highly processed white sugars, while saturated fats are primarily animal fats that remain solid at room temperature. A bowl of fresh fruit cut into pieces to make a salad may have as many or more calories than a bar of chocolate, but it offers the body much more nutrition since fruit is rich in vitamins.
At first, some foods and drinks may seem nutritious, but have added ingredients that make the choice high in empty calories. For example, fruit punch or juice with added sugar may feature real fruit juices, which give the product vitamins. However, the added sweet syrup takes away from the nutritional value of the drink. Plain fruit juice with no added sugar is a more nutrient-dense option.
Although steak and ground beef come from a cow, their nutritional value can be quite different. A small lean steak is a good source of iron and protein; It is considered a healthy serving of meat. But a fast-food burger made with fatty ground beef and sandwiched on a white bun with cheese and full-fat mayonnaise is considered mostly empty calories. The fact that meat also has protein and iron is dwarfed by the other unhealthy ingredients.
Although it may sound healthy, enriched flour is one of the most common sources of empty calories in food. The nutritious parts of the wheat, which are the bran and grain sections, are removed to create easier processing and a longer shelf life in supermarkets. Therefore, much of the fiber, minerals, and vitamins are no longer found in the resulting enriched white flour. The flour is “enriched” with just some of what was removed from it. Whole grain breads and cereals have their natural nutrients intact and are much healthier.
Although empty calorie foods still provide energy to the body due to their calories, that’s basically all they give to the body. Since bodies need vitamins, minerals, and protein daily to function properly, people eventually feel sick or ill if they eat mostly empty calories. A long-term nutritionally deficient diet can lead to many health problems that could be prevented by consistent consumption of high-calorie nutritious foods.
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