Do Negative Calorie Foods Work? What Are Negative Calorie Foods?

The negative calorie foods diet is an eating plan that has come under a lot of fire and a lot of scrutiny. Considered very controversial, it's sometimes hard to figure out what points are actually true and which are just smoke. The arguments make it even more confusing as it becomes obvious that there are many very different understandings as to what this diet is about and how it should (or should not) be followed.

In a world full of literally hundreds of dangerous fad diets, no one can be blamed for being skeptical of something that seems too good to be true. Being cautious isn't a bad thing. The name "negative calorie foods" is probably a major cause of a lot of the confusion and argument, as well as some people misunderstanding that this is a supplemental diet, not a full time eating and weight loss plan. The question remains: is this eating plan legitimate or is it some kind of unhealthy fad diet?

The argument over this question is likely to continue. Immediately most naysayers will argue that there's no such thing as a "negative calorie." Well this is true because you can't have something that exists tangibly at less than zero, but that's not what this diet is claiming at all! The claim this diet makes (which is also argued over) is that there are certain foods (all fruit and veggies) that force the body to work so hard to burn, digest, and turn the calories into energy that they end up with a "negative calorie effect." You eat 10 calories of celery, and the body uses 12 calories to digest it - that's the idea. This negative effect is what is meant when a food is listed as a negative calorie food.

These claims about "caloric deficits" have also been argued about, but in the end shouldn't the main question be whether or not a negative calorie foods diet can help people lose weight? To this, the answer is almost certainly "yes." All the foods on this list are healthy fruits and vegetables that provide tons of fiber, water, and roughage. This will keep a dieter regular, full, and eating much fewer calories to get to that point.

The arguments may continue on, but does that really matter? Even if negative calorie foods do not truly produce a real life deficit in calories, eating a ton of high fiber and high water fruits and veggies will almost certainly help the majority of dieters lose weight.