Consumers Still Don’t Understand Calories?

It’s on the label for every food we eat – so why do we still have a hard time with calories when it comes to weight management? Since 2006, International Food Information Council (IFIC) has been trending out consumer attitudes toward numerous health and nutrition topics. Steadily, when consumers are asked about weight managemen, calories still confuse. Hmmm…. that’s not good, considering America’s obesity and overweight status (2/3 of population) and the need for a negative energy balance (calories in < calories out) to lose weight.

According to IFIC’s survey, 55% are trying to lose weight, but very few are actually counting calories (17%)Even worse 63% of people inaccurately estimate the number of calories they take in, with 47% overestimating calorie intake and the remainder underestimating calories “in”. Just 15 percent of Americans are able to provide an accurate estimate of the number of calories they should be consuming.

Eeek… I mean, don’t get me wrong, nobody wants to count calories over the long term. But… hello…. if you want something to change YOU have to do something different. How can you know where to begin if you don’t know where you are at? I’ve personally seen in my practice that tracking food intake initially helps to raise awareness of the real barriers in one’s life (you might be surprise that it is not what you think). Sometimes, they are cutting too low and they have low energy, can’t complete their workouts and feel constantly tired. Other times, they cut out entire food groups without a medical reason and that throws off their nutrition balance. And still other times, they are just getting in too many calories, with % calories from fats reaching about 50%. The good news is many people are relieved to see that they can make SIMPLE changes to bring things into balance, such as cutting salad dressing from 3 tbsp to 1 tbsp and improving their “dining out” behaviors by choosing grilled/baked/broiled foods, sharing entrees and taking some food home.

I’m just wondering… do you think it is useless to continue to talk about calories if consumers have a hard time defining them and estimating their intake or do you think there is still benefit to the knowledge and accountability that comes with calorie counting if even for a short time?

Other things that work with my clients are:

• portion control – teaching how to estimate portion sizes and the plate method
• mindful eating – helping them get over the “grazing” or emotional eating that cause calorie intake to creep up (and frankly, annoys them because they recognize the non-hunger snacking is a barrier)

For those out there who are trying to eat healthy…. what works for you?

About IFIC’s Food and Health Survey

The 2009 Food & Health Survey: Consumer Attitudes toward Food, Nutrition, and Health, conducted by the International Food Information Council Foundation, is the fourth annual, nationally representative, quantitative study designed to gain insights from consumers on various food safety, nutrition, and health-related topics. The research provides the opportunity to understand how consumers perceive their own diets, their efforts to improve them, their understanding of the food components in their diets, and safe food preparation.

This survey also covers consumer attitudes toward meal occasions, dietary fats, carbohydrates and sugars, foods and beverages with added health and wellness benefits, low-calorie sweeteners, caffeine, food additives and colors, awareness and use of government-sponsored programs such as MyPyramid, and use of the Nutrition Facts panel and other forms of food and beverage labeling

For a copy of the full report or charts, please contact Eric Mittenthal (mittenthal@ific.org).

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