erin wrote:I apologize if this has already been asked but I am wondering why tofu isn't included in the calorie density chart. It's around 350 calories a pound so it seems like it should be...
Good question.
Tofu (like the soy bean it is made from) is a high fat food (around 47%) and while it is lower in calorie density , it is limited on all programs and especially on the MWL because of its fat content.
Understand that while the MWL program is based on calorie density, calorie density is just a number and there are several other things that come into play, all of which impact “the passive overconsumption of calories,” which is the real issue. Some of the other issues include the percentage of fat, the amount of fiber/cal, the satiety per calorie, the degree of processing, liquids vs solid, etc, The two most important things in determining the passive overconsumption of calories are the calorie density
and the percentage of fat of the food.
The higher the % fat, the more likely one is to overeat on a food. In addition, the higher percent of fat, the lower the satiety per calories as fat doesn’t trigger the satiety mechanisms. That’s the issue with tofu. It is very easy to overeat on due the very high percentage of fat and low satiety and amount of processing. All animals in nature will “passively over-consume calories” on high fat foods.
That is why on the MWL program, we not only avoid foods high in calorie density, we avoid foods high in fat. We also avoid liquid calories even though their calorie density is very low.
I hope that helps
In Health
Jeff