Quick Health Tip - Direct Calorimetry

​Direct calorimetry is a measurement of heat generated from metabolism. Fats and carbs do not have nitrogen and in consequence, the energy consumed equals the direct calorimetry. Protein kcals burn at 4.4 units as the nitrogen causes little differences between the direct calorimetry versus consumed values.

Other things to note are the coefficient of digestibility, which represents the value of energy that the body will produce from food it consumes after digestion; and the Atwater General Factors, which represents the values of food for nutritional purposes.

For coefficient of digestibility, kcals varies by the composition of fibers and molecules. It’s good to know the different measurements of the calorie, but remember, not all calories are created equal.