What is a calorie?
A calorie is a unit of energy. Calories are a measure of how much energy food or drink contains.
It is defined as the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of 1g of water by 1°C
Food calories
Food is given caloric value to suggest the amount of potential energy the food has:
- Carbohydrates – 4 calories/gram
- Protein – 4 calories/gram
- Fat – 9 calories/gram.
How many calories should I eat a day?
About 2000 calories. Well, men can eat a bit more (2,500 calories). But for women its 2,000 calories.
Calories and weight loss
To lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories than your body burns each day. Conversely, to gain weight, you need to consume more calories than you use.
The amount of energy you need will depend on:
- Your age and gender – for example, growing children and teenagers may need more energy
- Your lifestyle – for example, how active you are
- Your size – your height and weight can affect how quickly you use energy.
Other factors can also affect how much energy you burn
- Some hormones (chemicals produced by the body) – such as thyroid hormones
- Some medicines – such as glucocorticoids, a type of steroid used to treat inflammation
- Being unwell.
Summary
We have described what is a calorie. We hope you understand it better now.
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Last Reviewed on 12 March 2024