Does eating broccoli really burn more calories than it actually contains?
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| The staple vegetable of many bodybuilders and fitness models. It has long been considered to be the most prominent of what is known as: "Thermogenic Foods" |
Thermic Effect of Food / Thermogenic Effect of Food
Definition:
"The energy expenditure brought on as a direct cause of the digestion, absorption and transportation of nutrients" (Goljan, 2013).
The apparent criteria for a thermogenic or 'negative calorie' food is one that contains a low calorie count while simultaneously containing a high fibre count. A list of these so called fruits and vegetables can be seen below:
The Theory:
In one piece / spear of broccoli there is, on average, 11 calories. The theory of the thermogenic effect of food dictates that throughout the digestion, absorption and transportation of nutrients from that one piece of broccoli, the body actually burns more than the original 11 calories consumed.
"Great! So if i eat nothing but broccoli I will lose copious amounts of weight!"
Wrong!!!
This theory and subsequent popular assumption is wrong on two parts:
Part A: The theory is flawed
Part B: The Calorie Myth
Part A: Why the theory is flawed.
Different foods do use varying degrees of energy within the digestion-absorption-transportation process:
Carbohydrates: 5-15%
Fats: 5-15%
Proteins: 20-35%
The body obtains the above mentioned percentages from the energy obtained from the digestion process (Granata, Brandon, 2002). So if a piece of meat contains 100 calories the body will use 20-35 calories to digest, absorb and transport the nutrients from that piece of meat......on average of course.
No one is denying that certain foods use a varying amount of calories during this process, this has been proved in various studies. But not a single study has ever proved that the processing of certain foods like broccoli or celery. None! Zilch! Nada!
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| Unfortunately it's all lies, based on unfounded theories and evidence! |
In fact, those who fall into the category of overweight or obese have actually been found to burn an even lower percentage of consumed calories during the day compared to a lean individual. (De Jonge, Bary, 1997, Nelson, Weinsier et al. 1992).
Part B: The Calorie Myth
Part B will evolve into a 4 part series of blogs featuring over the next 4 Sundays.
We've already shown that no evidence to support TEF (Thermic Effect of Food) exists. But let's for one minute assume that the theory played out and you did in fact burn more calories than you consumed. This is based on the Calories in Vs. Calories out way of thinking, in that, if you require 2000 calories to maintain your bodyweight and only eat 1800 in a day, you will lose 200 calories and subsequently lose weight.
Wrong! And on many levels!
- A calorie is defined as a unit of energy that is required to contribute to a reaction within the body. A certain amount of calories are required for daily functioning and that is it! No mention of a certain amount of grams of calories so why would a reduction in the weight or number of calories consumed have a direct impact on the weight of an individual. It all depends on everything that comes along with the calorie. To put it another way some houses are heated using home heating oil, another house is heated using gas. They both heat our homes but weight totally different amounts, but, that doesn't effect how warm our house is, does it!
- Different foods cause different hormonal reactions within the body. These different hormonal reactions cause an array of different processes to occur and to make matters more confusing, each process effects each person differently based on body fat%, lean mass%, vascular health, nerve health, gut health, skin health and organ health. The hormonal changes can cause weight gain in one person and weight loss in another. This can again be influenced by stress, exercise and disease! In essence no one person is the same and any diet or nutritional plan should be individualized.
An excellent source on this very topic and a contributor to my own personal research is a book called:
"The Calorie Myth" by Jonathan Bailor." Below is a link to a review of his book through amazon! But remember to check out the 4 part series starting on Sunday night on my blog called "Eat Less, Lose Less".
Thanks,
Ethan
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