Calories in Food
 Whether people want to admit it or not, we need calories from food to live. Without them, we would wither away into nothing and starve. In recent years as people have become more concerned with their health and nutrition, calories have gotten a bad rap as being the cause of the obesity epidemic. This is both a correct and incorrect belief. The over consumption of wasted calories is what causes people to become overweight, but knowing what calories are in food and which foods you should be eating can help you have a better relationship with food.
In order to help people understand what calories in food are, the government requires that all packaged foods contain nutrition labels. These labels spell out pretty much the entire nutritional value of one serving of the food you are considering eating, including calories, protein, carbohydrates, fats, sugars, and other nutrient and energy sources found in the food. However, calories in food that doesn't come prepackaged, such as fruits, vegetables, and meats, do not have to have these labels. To help you out, here is a list of calories in common food that lack widely labeled nutritional information:
- Apple (1 small) - 52 calories
- Banana (1 medium) - 94 calories
- Orange (1 large) - 86 calories
- Strawberry (1 cup, halved) - 46 calories
- Broccoli (1 cup, chopped) - 35 calories
- Corn (on the cob) - 140 calories
- Lettuce (iceberg, 1 cup shredded) - 8 calories
- Tomato (1, raw) - 11 calories
- Chicken (3.5 oz of meat, roasted, with skin) - 223 calories
- Turkey (3.5 oz of meat, roasted, with skin) - 208 calories
- Beef (3.5 oz of 95% lean ground beef) - 193 calories
- Pork (3.5 oz of ham, roasted) - 252 calories
- Lamb (3.5 oz of USA lamb leg, roasted) - 242 calories
- Eggs (1 large) - 78 calories
- Milk (1% low fat, 1 cup) - 102 calories
As you can see, calories in food vary widely and depend on how much of the food is consumed and how it is prepared. Keeping track if your caloric intake (also known as calorie counting) can be a very effective way of losing weight, but understanding what foods you should be eating can be a daunting task. Consulting with your doctor or an experienced nutritionist about which calories in food you should be keeping track of can help you get a better understanding of what you are eating and aid in making healthier choices about the foods you and your family buy and eat. |
