The Problem with Many Low-Fat Diets
In general, individuals know that they should try to keep their daily fat intake low. 20%–35%[i] of daily calories, or around 44–55 grams per day[1], is the dietary reference intake quantity recommended for an adult’s diet. Considering that a single slice of pecan pie has 27 grams of fat and a tablespoon of Thousand Island salad dressing has 8 grams of fat[ii], it is not surprising that more and more people are checking food labels and “passing over” an order of onion rings[2] when they are trying to lose or maintain their weight.
However, many people’s health is being put at risk by the persistent recommendation that they cut out all fat from their diets, including beneficial unsaturated fat. When they try to be “fat free,” they end up gaining weight.
Weight-watchers often misunderstand or are unaware that “fat free” does not equate to “calorie free” while shopping for food. Therefore, many individuals eat excessive amounts of “fat-free” foods in the mistaken belief that they will not cause weight gain. However, it is not the fat grams themselves but the calories in these fat-free meals that lead to weight gain.
Fat contains nine calories per gram, more than twice as much as protein or carbohydrates. A person may consume the same number of calories by eating twice as many grams of protein or carbohydrates as fat. People are often told to eat less fat and stay away from fatty, oily foods like onion rings because they have so many fat grams.
Keep in mind that it’s not the term “fat” itself that makes fattening meals undesirable; rather, it’s the fact that 9 calories may be found in only 1 gram of fat. In other words, those who are watching their weight will want to limit their intake of fat since doing so will increase their calorie consumption.
People on diets who don’t understand that calories, not fat grams, are the main factor in weight gain and loss are often baffled by the body’s strange ability to do so.
Due to the average daily calorie expenditure (i.e., the conversion of food into energy), an average American adult male requires a daily caloric intake of 2000 calories. When compared to a typical male diet of 1800 calories per day, these “savings” amount to 200 calories. A dieter “saves” 3,600 calories (there are 3,500 in a pound) over the course of 18 days given this situation (18 x 200 calories). That’s the equivalent of losing one pound. In a similar vein, this dieter will gain one pound in only 18 days if she eats an extra 200 calories every day.
If a dieter doesn’t know about this formula, they might think that eating fat-free foods like “fat-free” caramel topping (6 tablespoons per day) doesn’t contribute to weight gain. The claim that there are zero grams of fat in this fat-free caramel topping is accurate. On the other hand, a serving of fat-free caramel topping (two tablespoons) has 103 calories.
These 6 tablespoons have a lot of calories: 309, which is 15% of the total daily caloric intake for a 2000-calorie-a-day diet. A person on a 44-gram-of-fat-a-day diet who doesn’t keep track of calories wouldn’t know this.
As a matter of fact, a dieter could eat nothing but “fat-free” items for a full day and still end up eating much more than they should. Without a doubt, these extra calories are not coming from fat grams but rather another source, most likely carbs.
Again, the advertising and marketing media fail to inform many people trying to lose weight of the fact that fat grams do not always “cause” weight gain. Instead, fat grams should be recorded along with carbohydrate grams and protein grams because they affect how many calories a person takes in as a whole.
Many so-called “healthy” snacks, such as energy bars, really have a high calorie count, adding needless complication to the situation. For instance, a chocolate chip Energy BarTM has 230 calories, which is just 40 less than a ButterfingerTM candy bar[v]. Unfortunately, some dieters consume many energy bars each day, gaining 230 calories without much fat content since each bar only has 2 grams of fat and is thus “low fat.” If the dieter exceeds his or her daily calorie intake, it doesn’t matter what kind of diet they’re following; weight gain will still occur. Yogurt-covered bars mislead dieters because they seem “healthier,” yet a serving of the yogurt-berry Balance Bar still has 200 calories, with just 25 coming from fat.
On the other hand, there are nutritional supplement brands that do the right thing by their consumers and are designed to be low in fat or fat-free. Dieters may benefit from these meals both during weight loss and in the critical time immediately after weight loss. Many people who have worked extremely hard and made many sacrifices to lose weight only to gain it all back within a few months after they have stopped dieting are disheartened to learn this sad truth. Environmental and genetic variables both have a role in whether or not a dieter will regain weight, but a big contributor is the lack of access to low-fat, low-calorie, and appetizing food options for dieters after they reach their desired weight. As a result, they go back to their old eating habits, and their weight quickly creeps back on.
However, as was previously noted, there are now smart nutritional supplements on the market that cover this hole and provide dieters and post-dieters with the meals they need to keep healthy and prevent weight gain in an ethical manner. It is hoped that such forward-thinking businesses and their goods will soon become the rule rather than the exception, for the benefit of present and future dieters who will battle with deceptive “fat-free” marketing.
