Negative Calorie Foods: Burn More Than You Consume

Negative-calorie foods are not zero-calorie foods; they are foods that have a negative effect upon total calorie consumption.

How Foods are Chosen

• A food is considered to have negative calories if it requires more calories to digest than it actually contains. A food item that contains 100 calories and requires 120 calories to digest provides a 20-calorie deficit, making it a negative-calorie food.

Types of Foods

• The negative-calorie food list includes approximately 100 high-fiber fruits and vegetables. Fiber slows the digestion process, requiring more energy to complete it.

Negative-Calorie Food Versus Free Food

• A negative-calorie food requires more energy (i.e., calories) to metabolize than the food actually contains, whereas a free food is one that contains 20 calories or less.

Pros and Cons

• On the positive side, negative-calorie foods benefit dieters because of their ability to burn fat. On the negative side, they do not contain proteins, fats or other nutrients.

Conclusion

• Negative-calorie foods offer documented health benefits, but they should not be the only food sources one consumes when dieting. They should be incorporated into an eating plan that supplies all the essential nutrients required to maintain good health.