Um, no. They’re bad for you. As in chicken-fried-steak-smothered-in-gravy bad. Having-Reese’s-peanut-butter-cups-for-dinner bad. A-few-beers-(okay, five)-at-happy-hour bad.
Empty calories foods are foods (or beverages) that have high calories but no nutritional value, such as vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. You know, the stuff your body actually needs from the food you eat.
Americans definitely have food issues, but we should give ourselves some credit. The thing that makes it hard to avoid empty calorie foods isn’t always poor judgment or lack of willpower – it’s convenience. Like most people, I don’t regularly pop into my local chain restaurant for a ribeye-fried shimp-baby back ribs combo. I eat pretty healthy, though like most females in their 20s, I could probably cut back on the Diet Coke. But when the mid-afternoon slump hits, you bet I’m in the kitchen at work, eyeing the array of (packaged, high-fat, empty calorie) snacks on the counter. I don’t even like most of these snacks – but they’re there, and I need something.
Of course, offices tend to be breeding grounds for empty calorie eating – people are stressed, short on time and energy, and need an immediate boost. Plus, there’s “event” food – birthdays (cake, cupcakes), lunch meetings (sandwiches, pizza), holiday parties (hors d’ oeuvres, booze). The event stuff is one thing (a birthday without baked goods is just plain wrong), but if we were better about the day-to-day stuff, we could probably afford to have a little food fun on special occasions.
Yes, our lives are crazy busy, but a little planning goes a long way. Tossing some whole-grain crackers into a plastic bag before you leave for work takes 10 seconds. (Or do it the night before if it’s always a mad dash out the door for you in the morning) Perhaps suggest to your employer that he or she purchase some healthy snacks for the office. I’m thinking a big Costco veggie tray. (But lose the ranch dressing.)
Click here for a good overview of what constitutes an empty calorie food (though it’s pretty much common sense – if it’s bad for you, it’s probably an empty calorie food):
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