What is kcal compared to calories

What is kcal compared to calories

Since calories are too small a measurement to use when discussing nutrition and exercise, kcal measurements are used instead and the term is interchangeable with calorie

Kcal and calories are a unit of measurement of energy in nutrition and exercise. The terms are used interchangeably in nutrition and do not need to be converted.

Calories are referred to as either small (lowercase “c”) or large (uppercase “C”), with 1 large Calorie equalling 1,000 small calories. Scientifically,1 kcal or kilocalorie is equivalent to 1 large Calorie or 1,000 calories. 

In other words, 1 kcal = 1 Cal = 1,000 cal

Since calories are too small a measurement to use when discussing nutrition and exercise, kcal measurements are used instead and the term is interchangeable with calories.

Calories refer to the amount of energy consumed from food and beverages, as well as expelled through daily activities and physical exercise. Fat, carbs, and protein are all calorie sources. Any calories not used by your body are stored as fat and can be turned into energy. 

Based on your age, size, and fitness you require a different amount of calories on a daily basis. According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans:

  • Women: 1,600-2,400 calories a day
  • Men: 2,000-3,000 calories a day

However, your level of physical activity also determines your recommended calorie intake:

  • Sedentary: Daily activities but no concentrated exercise
  • Moderately active: Light physical activity, such as walking, for 30-45 minutes a day, 3-4 days per week
  • Active: Working out for about an hour most days of the week

To maintain weight, you need to expend the same amount of calories you consume. To lose weight, you need to expend more calories than you consume (burn calories through exercise) or consume fewer calories than you expend (restrict calorie intake). To gain weight, you need to consume more calories than you expend.

Nutrition labels will inform you of the calorie (kcal) content of a specific food, but there is a big difference between good calories and bad calories. Good calories do not always come from low-calorie items. High-calorie and even high-fat meals can provide healthy calories. The key is the calorie-to-nutritional-value ratio.

Good calories include:

  • Lean protein
  • Healthy fats
  • Complex carbs from whole foods

Bad calories include:

  • Processed foods
  • Sugar
  • Refined flours
  • Unhealthy fats
  • Artificial ingredients

A low-calorie diet involves consuming foods that are rich in nutritional value yet low in calories. This type of diet emphasizes eating healthy and nutritious foods may help you lose weight and lower your risk of lifestyle diseases.

The principle behind the low-calorie diet is that eating fewer calories allows our systems to use stored fat rather than calories to sustain physical functions.

Pros

Cons

  • Constipation
  • Dizziness
  • Headaches
  • Fatigue

The most significant risk of calorie restriction is just going too far. Eating a little less than normal can improve your health and well-being, but going too far can be dangerous in many ways. Before starting a low-calorie diet, talk to your doctor to make sure that it is right for you.

What is kcal compared to calories
Diet-Wrecking Foods: Smoothies, Lattes, Popcorn, and More in Pictures See Slideshow

Medically Reviewed on 7/7/2022

Image Source: iStock image Kcal Vs Cal: What's the Difference? https://www.10differences.org/kcal-vs-cal/ Do You Know How Many Calories You Need? https://www.fda.gov/media/112972/download

How Many Calories Do Adults Need? https://www.eatright.org/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/how-many-calories-do-adults-need

The amount of energy in an item of food or drink is measured in calories.

When we eat and drink more calories than we use up, our bodies store the excess as body fat. If this continues, over time we may put on weight.

As a guide, an average man needs around 2,500kcal (10,500kJ) a day to maintain a healthy body weight.

For an average woman, that figure is around 2,000kcal (8,400kJ) a day.

These values can vary depending on age, size and levels of physical activity, among other factors.

Check if you're a healthy weight by using our body mass index (BMI) calculator

Our bodies need energy to keep us alive and our organs functioning normally.

When we eat and drink, we put energy into our bodies. Our bodies use up that energy through everyday movement, which includes everything from breathing to running.

To maintain a stable weight, the energy we put into our bodies must be the same as the energy we use through normal bodily functions and physical activity.

An important part of a healthy diet is balancing the energy you put into your bodies with the energy you use.

For example, the more physical activity we do, the more energy we use.

If you consume too much energy on 1 day, do not worry. Just try to take in less energy on the following days.

Knowing the calorie content of food and drink can help ensure you're not consuming too much.

The calorie content of many shop-bought foods is stated on the packaging as part of the nutrition label.

This information will appear under the "Energy" heading. The calorie content is often given in kcals, which is short for kilocalories, and also in kJ, which is short for kilojoules.

A kilocalorie is another word for what's commonly called a calorie, so 1,000 calories will be written as 1,000kcals.

Kilojoules are the metric measurement of calories. To find the energy content in kilojoules, multiply the calorie figure by 4.2.

The label will usually tell you how many calories are contained in 100 grams or 100 millilitres of the food or drink, so you can compare the calorie content of different products.

Many labels will also state the number of calories in 1 portion of the food.

But remember that the manufacturer's idea of 1 portion may not be the same as yours, so there could be more calories in the portion you serve yourself.

You can use the calorie information to assess how a particular food fits into your daily calorie intake.

There's a wide range of online calorie counters for computers and mobile phones. Many of these can be downloaded and used for free.

The NHS cannot verify their data, but they can be helpful to track your calories by recording all of the food you eat in a day.

Some restaurants put calorie information on their menus, so you can also check the calorie content of foods when eating out.

Calories should be given per portion or per meal.

Find out more about food labels

The amount of calories people use by doing a certain physical activity varies, depending on a range of factors, including size and age.

The more vigorously you do an activity, the more calories you'll use. For example, fast walking will burn more calories than walking at a moderate pace.

If you're gaining weight, it could mean you have been regularly eating and drinking more calories than you have been using.

To lose weight, you need to use more energy than you consume, and continue this over a period of time.

Get used to counting calories

The best approach is to combine diet changes with increased physical activity.

Find out how much physical activity you should be doing

If you need help losing weight, why not try the free NHS 12-week weight loss plan.

Updated on 2017-02-28

The information on this page applies to the following models: ACT101M/17 .

When it comes to finding out the number of calories you need, there are two different measurements: kcal and cal. What's the difference? The difference between Kcal and Cal is a difference in measurement. One is measured as kilocalories (kcal), which is 1,000 calories (cal). While the other is measured as calories, which can be used to measure food energy that represents one-thousandth of a kilocalorie.

A Kcal is used to measure food energy. The unit of measurement for kcal is usually written as "kcal" or C (uppercase).

On the other hand, a Calorie represents one-thousandth of a kilocalorie and it is represented by the lowercase "c". So, a kcal is equal to 1000 calories.

This is why the Calorie (upper case "C") and calorie (lowercase "c") are used interchangeably.

Difference in values

The first difference between kcal and cal is the fact that both are units of energy but their values differ. One kilocalorie (kcal) has 1000 times more energy than one calorie, which makes it a large amount of energy in comparison to an actual calorie.

The difference is also in terms of how they are denoted. Generally, a kcal will be denoted by a capital C and a calorie will be denoted by a small C.

How are they used in general

They are typically used a lot in food labels to indicate the number of energy people will get from eating a certain food item. This is especially important in diets where you want to know how many extra calories that particular food might give you. Which can then cause weight gain or weight loss depending on your daily calorie intake and target body mass index (BMI).

However, it's not just about getting an idea of what kind of caloric values are present in different foods but also knowing exactly how many kilocalories you should be having for each meal if your aim is to lose weight. This usually requires working out your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and then working out a diet plan by adding or subtracting another few hundred kcal into the mix depending on whether or not you're active or not.

In addition, both values apply differently with regards to food labeling laws amongst different countries worldwide. In some regions, there's no distinction made on nutritional labels where either capital or lower case lettering may be applied interchangeably whereas in Europe only calorie content is required to be listed.

To sum up, the key differences between kcal and cal are in their values and uses. Although both refer to the energy content of food or drink, one kilocalorie has 1000 times more value than a calorie which makes it a larger amount of energy. Furthermore, how they can be denoted (capital C for kcal) also differs by region worldwide while usage varies across different laws according to country.

References

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie