What are empty calories? We hear this term repeatedly and never quite get what exactly empty calories are. These are calories that give us a burst of energy but have no nutritional value to the body, They are not nutritionally balanced.
You can say unnecessary calories is a more accurate term for this type of calories, they are either burned off very quickly and turn into sugar, or your body stores them as fat. Most Americans derive about 50-60 % of calories from unnecessary or empty foods. This will ultimately result in weight gain, and lethargy.
Foods that are considered “empty” calories are white, refined starches and sugars, soft drinks, and many fruit juices. White bread, white potato, white rice, and white pasta all fall into this category. If you wish to try an experiment, remove one category of empty calories for one week, either soft drinks, or white rice, or white bread.
Check your weight before you begin and again at the end of the week. You should see some weight loss and improved energy.
Then, replace the white starch with the whole grain counterpart for 1 or 2 weeks and check your weight, your energy level, and your overall feeling of well being.
I can promise that you will feel the difference and be a few pounds lighter.
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