The Negative Calorie Food Diet Myth

Negative calorie food? Well then, it sounds like all our problems are solved! Some foods, the theory goes have "negative calories"!

Your body is supposed to use more energy to digest these foods from the negative calorie food family than it can get out of them!!!

What would that mean...? Well, we lose weight whenever we burn more calories than we take in. So, we could just fill up on these foods the whole day and get thinner and thinner...no more hunger, no more fighting...just eating, eating, eating and someday we have our ideal weight!

How cool would that be!

Whoa, hold on for a second...does this sound too easy...does this sound like a lot of hype...? Does it sound like the magic bullet we have all been waiting for...?

Yes, yes and yes!

And that is (of course) why it is a hyped up diet myth and nothing more (unfortunately)...

The theory says that our body needs more energy to chew and digest negative calorie food than it contains energy in form of calories.
However, our body of course only needs a minimal amount of energy to chew and digest food.

There is no serious scientific study that even comes close to proofing the negative calorie diet concept. And the concept itself is also very counterintuitive as the foods listed below are certainly popular foods that have been around for thousands of years. Now, why would our physically hard-working, hungry ancestors eat foods that rob them of their essential hard-earned calories and energy...? The negative calorie food family would be deadly poison in their eyes!

But let´s admit "Negative Calorie Food" is a pretty cool name. Some nifty marketing...well, it unfortunately raises quite some hope and expectations that can’t be backed up...but at least it makes for another good diet myth.

And now that we have the diet myth out of our way, let´s find out what foods are included in this food family and why they are still great for our weight loss effort.
Even without the magical effects...

The "Negative Calorie Food" Family is supposed to include...

...some vegetables and fruits as well as cold water...

Some of the "negative calorie food" vegetables are:

• Cabbage
• Asparagus
• Artichokes
• Spinach
• Carrots
• Broccoli
• Beetroot
• cresses
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Tomatoes
• Cucumber
• Salad
• Onions
• Peppers

Some of the "negative calorie food" fruits (eaten apart from other foods) are:

• Apples
• Papaya
• Pineapple
• Grapefruit
• Tangerine
• Cranberries
• Blueberries
• Strawberries

And, oh yes, the "negative calorie food" cold water...

...this is a good one!
The theory says here as well that the body requires up to 30 calories bringing 1 liter of cold water up to body temperature. However, it is more likely that the body simply gives up less heat to the outside as it is already getting cooled from the inside. So, no energy required...and therefore no weight loss from drinking to cold water...

Why "Negative Calorie Foods" are still great for your weight loss...

...o.k. so, unfortunately these foods are not the magic bullet for our weight loss effort...

...but they are still excellent for our diet plan because the members of this food family are healthy, natural and low on calories. The foods listed above include some of the finest that Mother Nature has to offer. And the Food Pyramid also advises us to base our diet on lots of fruit and vegetables.

So yes, let´s use them to our advantage and here is the why and how...

..."Negative Calorie Food" is a good base for healthy snacking to keep your metabolism up
Depending on your diet plan, the foods of this famous food family can make excellent snacks. If you are for example on a South Beach Diet, you can use these foods as great snacks. Eating snacks in between will ensure that you eat 5 meals a day. This is very important to keep your metabolism working. Otherwise your body can shut down and go into starvation mode.

..."Negative Calorie Food" can fill you up without consuming many calories
Again, depending on your diet plan, these foods also make for a perfect side dish to your main meals. Replace the side dishes you used in the past (like french fries) with these foods and you will obviously get some great effects. Make them part of your diet plan!

..."Negative Calorie Food" is also great for your after-diet menu and long-term healthy lifestyle
Keep these foods in mind for your diet-after-the-diet program and your transition phase towards a healthy lifestyle.
After you leave the fixed diet plans of your fast weight loss phase behind, it is especially important to not gain your weight back. Make it a rule after you have reached your weight loss goal to eat lots of "negative calorie food". This will greatly help you in keeping your weight off and achieving a permanent weight loss effect.

Share Your Weight Loss Tips and Advice

Do you have useful tips and advice to share, about ways to lose weight? Share them here!