Calories are important. They're a measure of the energy that fuels our bodies, that keep us alive. In the media recently there has been a big focus on calories, and their effect on weight loss/gain.
Some articles claim that they aren't important, but we shall ignore those because those are bullshit articles written by bullshit people. I'm talking to you Daily Mail.
Calories are important. But they're not all there is to diet and nutrition. If there are two people on a diet, and eat 1500 calories each, one eats 1500 calories of ready meals, chocolate and fizzy drinks, and the other eats 1500 calories of whole foods and a variety of fruits and veggies, in theory both will lose a similar amount of weight, but the second person will definitely be healthier.
We all know about Macros. Protein, carbohydrates and fats, but even if those needs are met there are other parts of nutrition to think about. Thinks such as Micro nutrients and vitamins.
We live in an age where people can go for days without eating proper, real fruit or veg. There are now people being treated for Scurvy. A disease that comes about due to a vitamin C deficiency. It used to be particular common in old world sailors, who spent weeks, and months at sea living off of dried food and biscuits. This was before we understood nutrients, and what they were. Now we do know what they are, and yet people still suffer from deficiencies.
This is because (according to a BBC survey) that less than 20% of adults eat their recommended 5 portions of fruit and veg a day.
Now, any idiot can see, that fruits and vegetables are present in a whole range of different colors. Why is that? It's not because natures a colorful beast. It's because they have a whole host of different nutrients in them, that pigment the fruit/veg and give it its color. Which is why eating a variety of fruit and veg, eating a bunch of different colors, is important.
There's tonnes of information on this out there, but not being a nutritionist i'm going to leave it here. I don't want to be putting out wrong information.
Instead, I'll recommend you go visit Rhitrition on Instagram or listen to her podcast.
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