Misconceptions Are Rampant Among Adults about Their Own Daily Calorific Needs

A study by the students of the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences of the University of Florida reveals that Americans in general have no clue about the actual calorific needs of their bodies. In most cases, across all body mass indexes they underestimated their daily energy requirements. In fact this misconception was most prevalent among the obese. This could be because they were unsuccessful in weight loss diets they might have participated in, states Professor Bobbi Langkamp-Henken. In a way this ignorance is good because otherwise people may not only be tempted to eat more than they normally would, the counting of calories may also build up stress in their lives. All food labels in their nutrition panel state a body’s requirement to be 2000 calories per day. But it actually differs from individual to individual depending on their weight, height and exercise level.