How many calories should you eat a day to be reasonable?

Calories are the energy source the human body needs. However, when the body has too much or too little energy from calories, it negatively affects health. So how many calories a day is enough? The article below will provide you with detailed information about the amount of calories each person's body needs to supplement in a day.

1. Calories and their role in the body

1.1. What are calories?

A calorie is a unit used to measure the amount of energy in food, expressed in terms of protein, fat and carbohydrates. Usually all foods have calories, but the calorie content in each food is not the same, and fat usually contains the highest amount of calories. Accordingly, calorie content depends greatly on factors such as protein, fat and carbohydrates:

– 1g of carbohydrate = 4 calories

– 1g of protein = 4 calories

– 1g of fat = 9 calories

– 1g of alcohol = 7 calories

In terms of measurement units, the calorie measures the energy of food, not kilograms. The most common calculation today is 1 kg = 7,700 calories, 1,000 calories = 0.13 kg.

1.2. The importance of calories for each person's body

Every day our body always needs calories (energy) to live and maintain its activities. When the body lacks an energy source, the cells in the body die and the organs cannot maintain the basic activities needed to sustain life.

If you want to maintain the body's normal activities, you need to provide enough of the necessary calories each day from food and drink. However, note that you should not supplement too much, in order to limit health problems.

1.3. How dangerous are too many or too few calories?

Calorie deficiency

When the body is not provided with enough of the necessary calorie content each day, it leads to an energy shortage for maintaining daily activities and causes symptoms such as fatigue, irritability, lack of concentration… If this condition lasts too long, the body is forced to use more of the calories stored in fat tissue and muscles, causing weight loss, physical exhaustion and reduced resistance.

Excess calories

On the other hand, when the amount of calories taken into the body is too high compared to consumption, or due to calorie-rich food or a sedentary habit, they become excessive and accumulate as excess fat. This leads to diseases of the bones and joints, blood pressure, cardiovascular and respiratory systems, etc.

2. How many calories a day is good for you?

2.1. How many calories does the body need each day?

To answer this question, first we need to know that the amount of calories the body needs depends on factors such as: weight, height, age, metabolism and activity level. Note that the calorie needs of each person's body are not the same.

According to experts' recommendations, the calorie needs of men and women are not the same. Accordingly, an adult woman needs about 2,000 calories a day to maintain the body's activities. An adult man needs about 2,500 calories a day. In particular, people with large builds or athletes need more calories than ordinary people.

2.2. How to calculate the body's daily calories

Our body always burns energy every day, even when doing nothing. Therefore, to maintain daily activities, we must ensure enough daily calories for the body. However, they must be supplemented reasonably to avoid a deficiency or excess of weight that affects health.

To calculate the amount of calories to take into the body each day, you can refer to the Mifflin-St Jeor formula:

– Calories for women: (6.25 × height in cm) + (10 × weight in kg) – (5 × age in years) – 161.

– Calories for men: (6.25 × height in cm) + (10 × weight in kg) – (5 × age in years) + 5.

Note that the calorie amount above is the content needed to maintain the body's activities in a resting state. In other cases it is calculated as follows:

– Combined with exercise: This number is multiplied by a specific value.

– Sedentary or sitting a lot: Multiply this number by 1.2.

– Light but not continuous activity: Multiply this number by 1.375.

– Exercising 3–5 times a week: Multiply this number by 1.55.

– Exercising every day: Multiply this number by 1.725.

– Work that is physically demanding: Multiply this number by 1.9.

2.3. How to burn calories

Calories are burned by being active and working hard. Simply put, people who walk at a moderate pace burn fewer calories than people who run. In addition, the amount of calories burned through physical activities differs from person to person. It also depends on many factors, such as age and diet.

As we know, the amount of calories the body needs differs from person to person. For those who need to gain weight, the calories consumed must be greater than the calories burned. Conversely, if you are in the process of losing weight, expend more energy than you consume. In particular, when supplementing calories for the body, you should also remember to prioritize calories from fiber and protein.

The article above covers content around the question of how many calories to eat a day. Sắc Ngọc Khang hopes that the information we share in this article will help you know how many calories your body needs to be provided each day. Knowing how to calculate your daily food portions scientifically and reasonably will be an "effective" solution to help you maintain good health and an ideal figure.