Fill up without filling out

Being a healthy weight doesn’t have to mean feeling hungry. Read on to find out the secret to feeling satisfied and staying slim.

The calorie conundrum

Which food in each of these pairs is higher in calories? Test your knowledge with our quick quiz.

Bowl of crunchy oat cereal (48g) OR Bowl of porridge (45g) and serving of fruit salad (120g)

20g dried apricots OR 3 fresh apricots

35g packet of crisps OR 1 slice of toast topped with baked beans

Glass of orange juice OR 2 oranges

Answers: In fact, each pair of dishes contains approximately the same amount of calories, but the choices on the right hand side are more filling and lower in energy density.

What is energy density?

Energy density is a measure of how many calories foods contain relative to their weight or volume – or simply, how many calories they contain per bite.

Foods that contain a lot of fat and sugar, like chocolate bars, would be described as energy dense because even a small amount is high in calories.

In contrast, vegetables and fruits are normally low in energy density. In between are starchy foods like bread, rice and pasta, and sources of protein like fish, poultry and meat. Check the energy density of different foods.

If most of the food we eat is low in energy density, we can add small portions of more calorie-rich foods if we want to. In fact, some energy-dense foods, like seeds, nuts and vegetable oils, form an important part of a healthy diet.

Why are these foods filling?

Lower energy-dense foods are often filling because they contain plenty of water and fibre – so they satisfy our appetites without expanding our waistlines. Eating a diet based on foods that have a low number of calories for their weight means you will feel satisfied with fewer calories.

Try some healthy recipes that are based on low energy-dense foods, and work out the energy density of different foods using our energy density calculator.