The Problem With Calories

Have you lost weight counting calories? Most people have, and then they gained the weight right back in no time at all. I hate counting calories anyway; it’s just boring. I love fasting. You count hours, but it only takes a few seconds, and you’re done.  There is no measuring this food or that. There’s no portion control. There’s…well, “doing nothing.” You don’t eat; you don’t cook; you don’t clean up. You use the time for more fun stuff!!!  

So, which has more calories, 1,000 calories of peanuts or 1,000 calories of peanut butter?  For the human body, if you answered peanut butter, you are right.  A calorie is used to measure heat generation. Like burning wood in a campfire.  Some types of wood like oak give off more heat, other types like willow less.  Instead of eating the peanuts and peanut butter, put them in a campfire and see what happens. Yes, peanut butter will burn.  In fact, when burned, both peanuts and peanut butter will produce calories of heat.  

In the human body, it’s a whole different program.  The human body must first digest the peanuts and the peanut butter, and it takes more energy to digest peanuts.  On the other hand, highly processed peanut butter is easy to digest, and more energy is available for use.  So, should we only eat peanut butter?  NO.  Peanuts have more healthy fiber and far fewer harmful chemical additives.  In this case, peanuts are the go-to healthy choice.  Do I eat peanut butter?  Occasionally, but as a snack or to break a fast, I’ll go for peanuts or nuts every time. 

It turns out that calories have very little to do with human physiology. Weight gain is a hormonal disease, not a calorie disease.  Calories do not make you fat.  The role of insulin is more important for understanding weight gain than calories.  Far more important than all the carbs, cals, or fat grams we’ve been taught to count. Calories in/calories out may work in the short term but not long run.  More on insulin later.