Do you know the benefits of Negative Calorie Food? If you do not know anything about it then you must read this article to learn about it as it helps with healthy weight loss!
Obesity is increasing in the world at a rapid pace. At present, there are around 600 million adults who are obese. With several types of weight-loss diets, it is quite overwhelming to find the right diet as well as the right fitness regimen. People who are obese or overweight would benefit from incorporating ‘Negative-calorie’ foods in their diet regularly.
‘Negative-calorie’ foods are popular among people who are on a weight loss diet. These foods packed with essential nutrients and have low calories that help in the management of body weight too. Nutrition experts prescribe diet program that has negative calorie foods as their major ingredient. In addition to reduce body weight, Negative-calorie foods also help you lead a healthy lifestyle in a challenging world.
How Are Foods Classified On Calorie Basis?
Based on the calorie content, foods are classified into two categories as empty calorie food and negative calorie food.
Empty calorie foods are those that do not provide any nutrition to the body. When you consume them, it creates a sudden spike in calorie content in the body. Processed and refined foods fall into this category.
On the contrary, negative calorie foods are those that have low calories in them. They are ideal to lose weight and provides a minimum level of calories to produce energy in the body. Let us know more about negative calorie food in detail.
Introduction to Negative Calorie Food
Negative calorie foods are one of the famous food trends that have seized everyone’s attention in the recent period. These foods have got low-calorie content and low glycemic index in them. They are rich in vitamins, dietary fiber, and minerals that help to meet the nutritional requirements in the body. Your body spends more calories to digest and process these foods than the number of calories it gets from them.
One of the best examples of negative calorie foods is a stalk of celery. It has only six calories with a high amount of dietary fiber. Your body burns over six calories to process it. The advantage of burning more calories than what you eat makes it a valuable addition to your diet. Negative-calorie foods help to maintain the healthy balance of calories that it needs on a daily basis.
In this way, these foods also reduce the excess weight in the body. Vegetables and fruits are negative calorie foods that contain a high amount of dietary fiber and water that consumes less amount of energy for digestion. Other common types of negative calorie foods are apples, cucumber, avocados, lettuce and carrots.
The best part of these foods is that you can consume them in larger amounts without any worries about weight gain. As the digestion of these foods takes up a greater number of calories than what the foods contain, it nullifies the addition of calories in the body.
How Negative Calorie Food Helps In Weight Loss?
One of the best uses of negative-calorie foods is that they assist in weight loss in a person. These foods are loaded with fiber. They take more time for the body to eliminate fiber from the body. By staying in the stomach for longer, they give a feeling of satiety to a person. It delays hunger and keeps you fuller for a longer time.
These zero-calorie foods release small amounts of energy in the bloodstream. So, when you consume negative-calorie foods, you take in low calories in the day and burn more. This creates a calorie deficit in the body that is ideal for causing weight loss. Due to this action, it makes it a wise idea to load your plate with these nutritious negative calorie foods.
The high fiber content in these foods requires you to chew them more. This requires your body to use calories as well as prolong digestion. In this way, negative-calorie foods keep your stomach fuller for a longer time.
The dietary fiber in these foods is difficult to metabolize. This requires the stomach to work hard and use a greater number of calories to absorb the food easily. When your body spends more energy, time, and calories to digest the food, it causes calorie loss and fat loss in the body.
Due to all these benefits, it is a good choice to replace processed foods with ‘negative-calorie foods. They provide your body with vital nutrients, as vitamins, dietary fiber, and minerals. Digestion of these foods requires more energy that leads to a calorie shortage in the body. The existing fat storage is utilized for the digestion and processing of these nutrients. This leads to fat reduction in the body.
Other Health Advantages Of A Negative Calorie Food
In addition to weight loss and restoring healthy Body Mass Index, there are several other health advantages of negative calorie foods.
- reduce your danger of cardiovascular ailments
- promotes better digestion and prevent constipation
- reduce the possibilities of diabetes
- lower the possibilities of metabolic syndrome
- may prevent specific types of cancers
- improve mood
- makes you feel light, energetic and happy
Examples of Negative Calorie Food
We have come up with a specific list of negative calorie foods that contains fewer calories, and a wide range of nutrition in them. To process these foods, your body has to burn more calories. Vegetables, and fruits are major examples of negative calorie foods. They are also a substitute for calorie-rich foods that include fried snacks, chips, canned, frozen and sugary treats.
1. Apples
An Apple a day keeps the doctor away. 100 grams of apple provides 50 calories to a person. This fruit is rich in fiber and makes a perfect snack to eat in between meals. Apple is a good source of soluble fiber pectin that stimulates weight loss in the body.
It is a low glycemic food that when consumed releases sugar at a slow pace in the bloodstream. In this way, it helps in the regulation of blood sugar in the body. The high fiber content in apples aids in digestion and relieves from constipation. With these benefits, apple is the ideal snack to deal with mid-day hunger pangs.
2. Celery
100 gm (1 cup) of celery provides only fourteen calories to the body. Due to this reason, Celery is ranked high in the list of negative calorie foods. Loaded with fiber, it is found to be high in folates and antioxidants such as Vitamin A, Vitamin C.
3. Broccoli
With just about 36 calories per 100 grams, this vegetable ranks high in the list of both superfoods and negative-calorie foods. It has rich amounts of antioxidants and fiber that exhibits exemplary anti-cancer properties. Broccoli is a plant-based high in fiber food that is a wonderful calorie burner too. This makes it an essential inclusion in your diet.
4. Grapefruit
Grapefruit is another beneficial superfood that makes its place on the list. 250 grams of this fruit contains only 69 calories in it. It is a storehouse of potassium, Vitamin C, folic acid, with good amounts of soluble dietary fiber, “pectin”. It also has high proportions of Vitamin C that aids in lowering the risk of inflammatory conditions i.e., asthma.
5. Carrots
130 grams of carrots contain 52 calories. They are also a dense source of essential vitamins that includes Vitamin A, C, and K, and minerals like potassium, and manganese. Along with being a potent source of dietary fiber, carrots are found to have low amounts of saturated fats, and cholesterol in it. Regular consumption of this vegetable helps reduce ailments like high blood pressure, vision-related ailment, obesity and more.
6. Lettuce
When it comes to negative calorie foods, you can’t ignore the importance of lettuce. One cup (35 grams) of this vegetable provides only six calories to your body. Along with it, you get loads of dietary fiber, manganese, folic acid and Vitamin B. This makes it a great addition to your weight-loss diet. You can get its benefits by adding it to your vegetable juice, salads, and dishes.
7. Cucumbers
Cucumber offers a myriad of health benefits to the body. Around 95 percent of this vegetable is water. 100 grams (1 cup) of this summer vegetable provides 16 calories to the body. Along with it, this juicy vegetable is plenty of minerals, electrolytes, and vitamins. It keeps a person adequately hydrated and cool.
Add them in your salad, sandwich, burger, or consume it in juice form to reap its amazing benefits. Cucumbers help maintain the right water balance in the body that makes it very beneficial in the summer season.
8. Tomatoes
Tomatoes are a sour delight that has only 32 calories in 180 grams (one cup). It is known for a potent antioxidant, “lycopene” that safeguards your body against harmful Ultra Violet rays. This wonderful and juicy vegetable also has ample amounts of potassium, dietary fiber and Vitamin C that help the body in numerous ways.
Tomatoes are an extremely hydrating vegetable that can prove to be effective for reducing excess levels of cholesterol in the body. Eat it in the form of salad, or add this tangy vegetable to any dish to increase its taste manifolds.
9. Berries
Berries are sweet and tangy flavored food that makes it the best substitution for sweet foods. Strawberries, Blueberries and Raspberries, have around 32 calories in 50 rams (1 cup). This delightful fruit is touted for its incredible anti-inflammatory and antioxidants properties that make them a superfood for your heart as well. Due to low-calorie composition, this fruit is included in various weight loss diet plans.
10. Watermelon
Watermelons are another summer food that has low-calorie content in it. 100 grams (one cup) of this fruit provides 46 calories to a person. Watermelons have a remarkable antioxidant named “lycopene” that can safeguard your heart. Rich in minerals, and vitamins, this fruit is beneficial for healthy circulation of blood and enhanced immunity in the body.
11. Zucchini
Zucchini is a highly suggested negative calorie food by health experts. 100 grams of it contains only eighteen calories. Loaded with water content, it is a great food to hydrate the body and feel full for a longer time. Zucchini has good amounts of phytonutrients that promote regular bowel in the body. It is an ideal food that prevents dehydration and maintains the right water balance in the body.
Other Low-calorie Foods
Along with the above list of foods, it is also necessary that you consume nutrition-packed, and low-calorie foods in your diet. All the below foods are ideal to include in your weight loss diets too.
Veggies – Eggplant, spinach, kale, boiled potatoes, scallions, radish greens, okra, cabbage, and French beans, and chard.
Fruits – Lemon, berries, lime, tangerine, and orange.
Protein – Pork, skinless chicken breast, lentils, beans, soy products, fish, eggs, and mushrooms.
Healthy Fats – dry fruits, seeds, and Olive oil.
Sample Negative Calorie Diet Plan
Now that you have learned about the negative foods, it is also important to learn the right way to eat it. Pay attention to their amounts, and the time at which you eat them. When you eat it right, it will provide the desired benefits to you.
Here, is a sample negative calorie diet chart that will give you an idea of the right time, and proportion to eat it.
Breakfast at 8:00 a.m.: One cup of green tea and one medium bowl of oatmeal with chopped nuts, and berries.
Mid-morning Snack at 10:30 a.m.: One medium-sized cucumber
Lunch at 12:30 p.m.: One cup sautéed mushroom with a half cup of lettuce, one stalk of celery, one-fourth cup of tomato, one-fourth cup of baby spinach and olive oil dressing
Evening Snack at 3:30 p.m.: One cup green tea with one digestive biscuit
Dinner at 6:30 p.m.: 1 cup of lentil soup with vegetables or chicken soup
To satiate your sweet buds, you can add dark chocolate (with at least 80% raw cacao) once a week.
List of Calorie Dense Foods That You Should Avoid
If you are on a weight loss diet, then you should avoid following calorie-dense foods in your diet.
- Processed and refined foods
- junk-foods and fast foods
- ready to eat meals
- sweetened fruit drinks
- red meat
- full-fat milk
- full-fat yogurt
- peanut butter
- rice
- dates
- chicken thigh
- bacon
- salmon and oily fish
- cheese
- pasta
- mango and banana
Conclusion
Healthy food selections and an active lifestyle are very important in people who are overweight and/or suffer from different types of weight loss ailments. Negative calorie foods are versatile foods that you can add to your diet in various ways.
Regular intake of these foods with a balanced diet shows amazing results, and promotes overall health and wellness in a person. When you shed excess weight naturally and safely, you would not want to return to your old lifestyle. That is an assurance.
If you liked this post, then do share it with your friends on social media. Also, you can write to us with any of your suggestions, comments, and queries. We will be happy to address them soon.
Related Posts
