Recommended Calorie Intake

So you miss that rocking figure that used to turn heads back in college and have convinced yourself that avoiding calories absolutely will get you your mojo back? Or perhaps you are just trying to watch your weight? Well, you may want to know the consequences of getting too little calories.

Calories are extremely important for normal body functions. If your body lacks enough energy-giving foods, it starts to burn off the energy reserves mainly situated in fat tissues underneath your skin. Lethargic feelings and fatigue are some of the immediate effects of getting too little calories. Continuous low intake of calories could lead to enormous weight loss, malnutrition and dehydration.

Even children who are inactive need some calories to enable their growth and development, so getting too little calories will not work even for this group and any other group for that matter as calories are needed to perform all body functions. Kids in particular are at risk of consuming too much junk food that may not contain the amount of calories needed for their rapid growth and play.

The secret would be to provide them with food portions with a high amount of calories and also rich in other nutrients such as minerals and vitamins. Bear in mind that these children are still growing up and getting too little calories is harmful to their growth. So maintain their calorie intake to a standard level – 900 calories and below per day will do for kids under the age of one year while ten years and below will need around 1500 calories daily. As they approach teen age they will need at least 1800 calories per day. If you are an adult concerned with just how much is too little or too much, then around 2000 to 2500 calories will do depending on your sex and level of activity.

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Getting too many calories has never been good if you are not intending to gain any extra weight. If you are not involved in regular exercise, active sports or any other regular physical activities then eating food and consuming drinks with too many calories is not recommended as these extra calories in your body are turned into fat and stored under your skin. Thus getting too many calories will end up making you obese or overweight.

As much as calories are needed to maintain your body functions or even if you intend to add on some weight, you will not want to risk getting too many calories in your body. Consuming too many calories is associated with many chronic heart diseases such as cardiovascular arrest, heart attacks and coronary heart diseases.

You will know you are getting too many calories with your food if your are consuming a lot of fatty food substances such as butter, cheese, peanuts, creams snacks, cakes, doughnuts, high fat-cut meat, coconut oil, olive oil and so on. Most of the saturated and unsaturated fats as well as hydrogenated or processed foods are very rich in calories.

Protein and carbohydrates are not as rich in calories as fats. While one gram of protein or carbohydrates contains only four calories, a similar amount of fat contains nine calories – more than double that of other food substances. Thus it is recommended to keep fat content in your food as low as possible, say 20% to 35% of your total food intake. Very active individuals, however, may consider eating additional calories to compensate for the energy lost through physical activity.

When you are a kid or a teenager your body is undergoing rapid cell growth and division, so a higher intake of calories is not bad for you. If you are an adult and not that active, getting too many calories will not be good for you. Actually you just need enough to cover your basal metabolic rate plus any calories burned through exercise.

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