Since I have come to Penn State, I have realized so many people are trying to beat the freshman fifteen. Most do it by either exercising regularly or dieting, which can include counting calories. I for one have never gone to the length of counting and limiting myself to a certain number of calories. To me, it is simply too much work for little results, especially if it means that I am starving because I limit myself to a certain amount of food. When noticing these habits, I got to thinking What is a calorie? Why are they such a big deal?

Basically, a calorie is a unit of energy but, when you break it down, there are two types of calories.According to Medical News Today, “a small calorie is the amount of energy required to raise one gram of water by one degree Celsius. A large calorie is the amount of energy required to raise one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.” One large calorie is composed of 1000 small calories. When it comes to food, you are consuming large calories. So really when you eat something with 20 calories you are actually consuming 20,000 calories.

It is obvious that our bodies need energy to survive, so calories are crucial to life. Too much or too little of calories though can be detrimental to your body, so it is important to consume just enough. At CalorieKing you can calculate how many calories you should be consuming based on your height, wieght, age, and gender. It will also ask about how physically active you are because if you burn more than a normal person you will also need to consume more. At Keep and Share, you can find out how many calories are in different types of food.

So what happens when a person consumes more calories than they burn?

If you find yourself consuming more than you are using, three things may possibly occur. The first, and probably the most recognized, is weight gain. According to Jill Lee, when you consume more than you use, the left overs get stored as fat for later use. She also explains that the extras are put into the “fat cells that grow and expand, causing you to gain weight and get bigger” It now makes a little sense as to why people count calories when dieting. Lee also goes on to talk about heart problems and diabetes. If your extra calories are high in fat your arteries will clog with a sticky plaque, which causes your heart to have to work harder. The same goes with eating foods high in sugar. Your pancreas has to work harder to convert the sugars into energy, which after gaining a resistance to insulin, can lead to Type-2 diabetes.

So what happens if you don’t consume enough calories?

This is where dieting gone wrong comes in. Not consuming enough calories may aid in weight loss but not the right weight loss. If you don’t get enough of the right calories you will start losing you lean weight, which is in you muscle, bone, and organs. These things begin to break down in order to keep the body function. To avoid losing the wrong weight, consume the recommended amount of calories and work out. Working out will build muscle, which in turn raises your metabolism, which allows you to consume more food.

As long as you are not eating poor quality food and maintaining a healthy balance of food and exercise, you should be good. If you want to take the extra precautions for your health, you might want to consider looking at your calories.