“Negative calories” sound almost too good to be true: foods that are said to use up more calories when digested than they provide to the body. Eat and lose weight at the same time – is that an insider tip for losing weight or just a myth? We investigated the question.

What does “negative calories” mean?

The term originally comes from advertising and has spread rapidly: negative calories as a slimming product. When the body uses more calories to digest a food than it takes in, it is called “negative calories”. The calorie account then results in a quasi-negative balance. If you eat a lot of these foods and do without hidden calorie bombs, you should lose weight quickly. But is that even true?

Negative calories: what foods are included?

Above all, foods that have hardly any calories but a high proportion of fiber are among the foods with supposedly “negative calories”. Fiber boosts metabolism and digestion. Fruits and vegetables are generally low in calories. You can therefore definitely integrate the following foods into your diet to make it easier to lose weight:
Celery (20 calories per 100 grams)
Carrots (29 calories per 100 grams)
Watermelon (25 to 30 calories per 100 grams)
Cucumbers (12 calories per 100 grams)
Grapefruit (36 calories per 100 grams)
Apple (60 calories per 100 grams)
Orange (45 calories per 100 grams)
Cauliflower (30 calories per 100 grams)
Lettuce (14 calories per 100 grams)
Green beans (30 calories per 100 grams)
Lemon (29 calories per 100 grams)
Tomatoes (18 calories per 100 grams)
Zucchini (15 calories per 100 grams)
Tangerine (50 calories per 100 grams)
Red peppers (20 calories per 100 grams)
Spinach (16 calories per 100 grams)
Radishes (14 calories per 100 grams)
Strawberries (32 calories per 100 grams)
Asparagus (18 calories per 100 grams)
Mushrooms (16 calories per 100 grams)
The effect is said to be even greater when drinking ice water. It has no calories at all, and to bring the water up to body temperature, the body burns a lot of energy

Too Good To Be True: Are Negative Calories True?

Unfortunately, however, negative calories remain a pipe dream. The nutritionist Antje Gahl from the German Society for Nutrition (DGE) says to gofeminin.de that the body needs energy to digest every food, but that with a normal mixed diet one only assumes 10 percent of the energy brought in.

It has not been scientifically proven that 100 percent – or even more – of the calories of a food are burned. There are no negative calories. Gahl doesn’t think much of the ice water myth either: If energy is actually burned, this proportion is so small that you don’t notice it on the scales. Sad but true! Unfortunately, negative calories are just a myth.

A concrete example: A stalk of celery has about 10 calories. The energy required for digestion is about two calories. The number of calories is therefore given as 8 calories per stick. So 8 calories are left over after digestion. On average, about 10 to 20 percent of a food’s calories are used for digestion. Using 100 percent of calories in digestion is impossible!

10 tips on how to really lose weight

Unfortunately, the fact that you can save calories by eating could not come true. However, the German Society for Nutrition (DGE) has established the following 10 nutritional rules that should keep you healthy and promote performance and well-being if you follow them.

Enjoy a variety of foods: Choose mostly plant-based foods
Vegetables and fruits: Eat three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit daily. This includes legumes such as lentils, chickpeas and beans.
Whole grain instead of wheat: When it comes to grain products such as bread, pasta, rice or flour, the whole grain variant is the best for your health.
Animal products daily, fish once a week. Meat no more so 300 to 600 grams per week.
Health-promoting fats: Prefer vegetable oils like canola or olive oil.
Save sugar and salt: Sweetened foods are not recommended. Use sugar sparingly and reduce salty foods.
Drink water: Drink 1.5 liters of water daily or other non-caloric beverages such as unhealthy tea. Sugar-sweetened and alcoholic beverages are not recommended.
Prepare food gently: cook food for as long as necessary and for as little time as possible. Avoid burning food when roasting, grilling, or deep-frying.
Eat mindfully and enjoy: Just focus on your meal and don’t let yourself be distracted.
Watch your weight and keep moving: wholesome nutrition and physical activity go hand in hand.
In order to lose weight or avoid weight gain, you should not do without anything, but eat healthy and wholesome food and stick to the rules of nutrition as far as possible. A vegetarian diet is also recommended. And if you don’t want to give up meat completely, you can at least try to reduce your meat consumption.