Browse: Home / Obesity / The calorie label on that packet of nuts is wrong

Menu

Skip to content
  • About
  • Better Body Chemistry School
  • Book a health conversation
  • Speaking query
  • The “Big” Spoons
Header image

BBC

Small things can make a big difference to your health

advertisement

Menu

Skip to content
  • Home
  • Free Resources
    • 31 days to Better Body Chemistry
    • Willpower Report
    • Weight loss e-course
    • Better Body Chemistry for Expecting Moms
    • The ups and downs of insulin resistance
    • Candy Floss Boards
    • Weight tracker
    • Sound bites
  • Library
  • Shop
  • Lucky dip
  • Buy me a coffee
  • Video gallery
  • Contact

The calorie label on that packet of nuts is wrong

Posted by Dr Sandy on in Obesity | 1256 Views | Leave a response
Share
WhatsApp
Reddit
More
Tweet
Pin
Share

Share Button

Click to listen to the audio…

Nuts are NOT as fattening as you think !

counting the calories of nuts

Nuts are considered a high calorie snack. They’re actually not. It turns out, they GOT THE CALORIE COUNT WRONG !

I am not a big calorie counter…….

So the fact that nuts are a high calorie snack, doesn’t phase me.

I eat nuts, EVERYDAY !  I LOVE THEM.

In fact,  the thing that curtails my nut consumption, is the noxious fumes I emit, when I have too many, not the calorie count.

But, I know for  many people………. the CALORIE COUNT, is what keeps nuts, off their menu.

And the price. Eish ! They are rather expensive.

What if I told you, they actually NOT that high in calories.  Seriously…..

  They GOT THE CALORIE COUNT WRONG !

Calorie labels

Are based on calculations, not actual measurements.

If you realize what a palaver it is to actually measure the calorie count of a food, you quickly realize, why for most foods, it’s  calculated.

The calculation is based on Atwater factors…..

Calculating the calorie count

Which really just means, the amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates is measured.  It is assumed that a fixed percentage of these macronutrients, will be digested.

In the case of nuts………..

It is assume 78 % of the protein, 90 % of the fat and 97 % of the carbs, will be digested.

The rest will be pooped out.

But are nuts all that digestible ?

This is what a team of researchers, based at Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Centre in MD, set out to discover.

Nuts to volunteer ?

They enlisted the help of 18 PLUCKY healthy volunteers and fed them cashew nuts.

Plucky…………….

These guys had to collect all their poop and urine, every day for 7 days, on 2 separate occasions.

To nut or not to nut

The first occasion, served as the baseline, during this time, NO CASHEW nuts were consumed, the second occasion, corresponded with CASHEW snacking.

The size of the cashew nut snack  was 42 g per day, that’s a generous handful.

21 g at breakfast and 21 g at dinner.

Calorie counting

Everything else was kept pretty much the same,  with all the meals and snacks, being provided by the  research centre.

NOTE : Minor adjustments were made to ensure, the total calorie count was the same, on both occasions.  These adjustments were individualized, so people did not lose or gain weight, during the study.

Cashew nut digestion

The team calculated what went in…………..in terms of the fat, nitrogen, energy and ash content.

Then they calculated what came out.

how much nut goes in and out

Both ends !

They used this information, to  determine just how much of the cashew nut snack was assimilated, for each subject.

Here are the results…

Counting cashew calories

There were differences between individuals.  Some people were good cashew nut digesters, some, not so much.

But, no one digested the nuts, as well as PREDICTED.

nut calorie count graph

Energy value of cashew nuts. Subject # indicates data from an individual subject; each subject
number indicates a different individual. Copyright 2018 Baer & Novotny

The “red” line shows what was expected, based on Atwater factors.  In reality, the number of calories was on average, 16 % lower.

Yah !  Cashew nuts aren’t so fattening…..

It’s a nut thing

It’s a nut thing, not a cashew phenomenon.

The same thing happens when you eat

  • Walnuts
  • Almonds
  • Pistachios

NOTE : In the case of pistachios the difference is quite small, only 5 %.  In walnuts and almonds, the difference is in the order of 20 – 25 %.

enzyme struggling to crack open a nutThe calories are ………………….

Stuck inside

As plants, nut cells have a robust cell wall.  Popping this open, is a little challenging for us humans.

It does happen…………..

But the contents of every nut cell, is not released.nutty smelling poop

Many whole  nut cells make it out of the gut, still intact.

The more processed the nut is, the more likely it is that the cell wall will break somewhere along the digestive tract …………..

Allowing the contents to be digested.

Processing helps

Roasting nuts, increases the brittleness of the nut, making “chomping” on the nut, a little more effective, this means smaller particles are created.

A smaller particle is easier to digest.

Grinding up the nuts, to make a nut butter, will also result in smaller particles and increased nutrient digestibility.

But, when all is said and done…………..

Rethink nut snacks

 

Nuts are not as calorie dense, as we’ve been led to believe.

They’re pretty satiating and  full of nutrients.

Some of their claims to fame : they’re high in magnesium, vitamin E and fiber ; all of these are nutrients, we’re often not getting enough of.

So, don’t be afraid to include nuts in your diet.

row of cartoon nuts

Share Button
Metabolizable Energy from Cashew Nuts is Less than that Predicted by Atwater Factors.  Nutrients (2018) 11(1). pii: E33. David J. Baer and Janet A. Novotny.

Further reading

pistachio nuts improve heart resilience

If you must nibble when stressed, nibble on something de-stressing

Stress brings out the need to nibble, for a diabetic, the choices are limited, so what should a diabetic snack on ?

walnut winning the nut contest

Crack open a walnut to beat heart disease

Numerous studies have linked regular nut consumption to decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. All nuts have talent but the nut of nuts is the walnut.

gut bacteria being fed almonds

Almonds are like dog biscuits for bacteria

You feed your dog specifically formulated biscuits so it has all the nutrients a dog needs to be healthy but your gut bacteria have to keep going on leftovers.

 

Want to discover more ways to create BETTER BODY CHEMISTRY ?

Share
WhatsApp
Reddit
More
Tweet
Pin
Share
Posted in Obesity | Tagged almond, calories, fattening, fiber, food label, magnesium, nuts, obesity, pistachos, snack, walnut

Sugar gremlins are REAL

Connect with us

facebook you tube pinterest 40 google plus 40 Linkedin
willpower report
  • Popular
  • Featured
  • Recent
  • asprosin the sugar plum fairy

    Why sugar levels are high despite NOT eating

    20757 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    19916 views / Posted
  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    19190 views / Posted
  • chewing gum relieving postoperative ileus

    A stick of chewing gum gets the gut going after surgery

    16757 views / Posted
  • carbonated water bubbles fill you up

    Fizzing up the water flattens your appetite

    15600 views / Posted
  • sun extracting cholesterol

    Make sure you have your “annual” check-up in the summer time

    / Dr Sandy
  • sending your kid to bootcamp won't stop childhood obesity

    Moving more won’t stop your kid from getting fat

    / Dr Sandy
  • cholesterol at the scene of the accident

    Bone cells are stiffening up your arteries not cholesterol

    / Dr Sandy
  • brain size the problem in ADHD

    Are kids with ADHD just acting according to their brain age

    / Dr Sandy
  • plastering the blood vessel with calcium

    Calcium supplements are building bones and breaking hearts

    / Dr Sandy
  • nose feeling blocked

    A simple “cure” for chronic sinusitis

    / Dr Sandy
  • triglyceride sweeping up sugar

    Dietary fat and carbs DO MIX in a “good” way

    / Dr Sandy
  • what would batman eat

    Batman can rescue your child from poor food choices

    / Dr Sandy
  • grape shooting fat at a man eating grapes on the couch

    The inconvenient truth about eating more fruit to be healthy

    / Dr Sandy
  • beta cell asking for a dopamine hit

    The dopamine hit your beta cells need to function at their best

    / Dr Sandy

RSS Recent posts

Dr Sandy Dr Sandy Evans, PhD

Located in Johannesburg, South Africa

Disclaimer : The stories and articles are provided as a service. Dr Sandy's opinions are for information only, and are not intended to diagnose or prescribe. For your specific diagnosis and treatment, consult your doctor or health care provider.
 

Book an appointment

Calendar icon
 

Connect with Dr Sandy

facebook 40
you tube 40
pinterest 40
linkedin 40
 

Categories

Featured posts

  • asprosin the sugar plum fairy

    Why sugar levels are high despite NOT eating

    20757 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    19916 views / Posted
  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    19190 views / Posted
 

©2011-2022 Spoonful of Science

Menu

  • Meet Dr Sandy
  • Disclosure/disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Comment policy
  • Contact
Share
WhatsApp
Reddit
More
Tweet