How many calories should I eat? that is the question...

Over and over someone comes and ask here or on a main board, or on any other board:
"How many calories do I need to get?
 
I find this question very difficult to answer.  Because that may depend on how big you are at the present, how much do you excersise, how much muscles and body fat do you have, etc, etc, etc,, and on top of that - what food do you eat.  do you drink coffee or not, alcohol or not, etc.

I read and read and I do strongly belive that the way we calculate calories - is only an estimation, and a person has to take into account what food it is, how much fiber it has, how was it preppared, how long it stayed in our body,  and how that food affected our hormon levels (thyroid, insuline, estrogen, cortisol, etc.)  and so on. 
So one person can lose weight on over 2000 calories a day, while another will struggle to maintain on 1200-1400 a day.  

 

here is an interesting article that talks about the colories in foods:


"A Calorie Is Not a Calorie

Food calories affect the body very differently depending on their source and the overall context in which they are consumed
A Calorie Is Not a Calorie I’m sure you’ve heard the expression, “A calorie is a calorie." It means that carbohydrate, fat and protein calories are equal in terms of their effect on body weight. This point is most often made in the context of debates between low-carb and low-fat diet advocates. Those who say “A calorie is a calorie" in this context mean to suggest that macronutrient proportions are irrelevant to weight management (as long as one is getting enough of each to meet one’s basic health needs). All that matters is the total number of calories consumed, regardless of whether the plurality comes from fat or carbohydrate. Weight management is a simple game of math, these folks argue. To maintain your current weight, you need to consume the same number of calories your body burns each day. To lose a pound, you need to create a caloric deficit of approximately 3,500 calories. Whether you create that deficit by eating less fat, less carbohydrate, less protein or a little less of everything is immaterial. It sounds sensible, but it’s actually not true. A calorie is not a calorie, in more than one sense. Carbohydrate, fat and protein calories are indeed equal by definition in terms of their energy content, but the body processes each in a distinct way, and these differences have real implications for weight management. In addition, food calories of all types may have very different effects on the body depending on when they are eaten and what they are eaten with. Following are five specific reasons why all calories are not equal.

1. The energy cost to metabolize fat, carbs and protein is different
2. Calorie restriction slows metabolism
3. Protein reduces appetite
4. Fiber reduces calorie absorption
5. Timing of eating affects calorie processing"

for more look in: 
http://www.peaksware.com/articles/nutrition/a-calorie-is-not -a-calorie.aspx

or more than that:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&aq=0h&oq=&ie =UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGLL_enUS326&q=calories+are+not+equal

Thanks for posting.  I am trying to make a few changes.  Just me

Thanks for reminder Hala.....:-)   I am still alive, just very busy!  Have a good weekend!