|
We all need energy. But are we consuming too much for our lifestyles?
Someone once said that being overweight was “a normal response to an abnormal environment”. In today’s busy world, the easy and convenient options tend to be comparatively unhealthy, high-kilojoule foods, served up in large portion sizes. What was once an abnormal diet has become all too normal for many of us.
Modern life also means fewer opportunities for physical activity thanks to labour-saving devices and high-tech “sedentary” entertainment. So we’re not burning off the energy that we’re consuming.
Which all means our kilojoules can turn into killer-joules – contributing to a range of weight related health problems, some of which are potentially fatal.
What are kilojoules (kJ)?
Kilojoules are a measure of the fuel we burn for energy to keep our bodies working. The common measure for this used to be ‘calorie’, but ‘kilojoule’ is the measure now accepted internationally.
If you eat more kJs than you need, the extra energy is stored on your body in the form of fat, and you gain weight.
If you eat fewer kJs than you need, your will draw energy from your body fat and you will lose weight.
The more physical activity you do, the more kJs you burn.
To maintain a healthy weight we must balance the kJ content of our eating patterns with the kJ output, through our regular activities.
The kJ needs of most New Zealanders are within the range of 6,000 to 12,000 per day. But for the last 10 years the average adult New Zealander has been gaining about a gram of weight a day, which suggests we’re taking in a little more energy than we really need.
This could be because many of us do not know which foods have a high-kJ content and we eat too much of them before our body signals that we’re feeling full and should stop eating.
Also, the growing reliance on eating foods prepared outside of the home means we don’t know how much energy is in the food, drink or meal.
How do you know whether you have high-kJ eating habits? Here are some tell-tale signs:
- Eating high-kJ foods between meals or “grazing” through the day.
- Eating a high-kJ food because you really like it, and not because you’re hungry.
- Eating everything on your plate (“just like Mum taught you when you were little”) or in a package, whether or not you feel full.
- Taking a bigger portion size than usual and eating it all without thinking.
- Preferring high-kJ and high fat foods over fruit and vegetables; and relying on foods to cheer you up (“comfort eating”), to relax, for entertainment, or to fill in time.
- Balancing energy IN with energy OUT
Note: Energy expenditure is calculated for a 74 kg person. Energy costs of activities per kilogram body weight = walking 25 kJ.min-1, wallpapering 15 kJ.min-1, chopping wood 26 kJ.min-1, cleaning windows 18 kJ.min-1, painting 24 kJ.min-1, raking leaves 17 kJ.min-1, ironing 10 kJ.min-1.
|