NHS Calorie checker: What a great idea I... - Weight Loss Support

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NHS Calorie checker

Jumberly profile image
6 Replies

What a great idea I thought, a Calorie checker provided by the NHS....

Something you can actually trust.....?

That is until you check it and find it's littered with mistakes - really, can't they get even this right? How many diets has this ruined?

OK...Try checking the kCal on a slice of wholemeal bread.....215kCals

Toast it and it becomes....252kCals (really?...just by adding heat we gain 47kCals?)

White bread?

Toasted with 10g of butter.....144kCals

On it's own (no butter)......265kCals

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Jumberly profile image
Jumberly
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6 Replies
moreless profile image
morelessAdministrator7 stone

You have to very carefully check serving sizes Jumberly :)

The bread and toast are listed as 100g serving size - toast loses water in cooking and is therefore more dense.

The toast and butter, is listed as a medium slice, which is less than 100g and therefore fewer calories.

I hope this helps :)

Anon-E-Mouse profile image
Anon-E-Mouse in reply tomoreless

Sorry moreless just saw your reply after posting mine, didn't mean to duplicate 😄

moreless profile image
morelessAdministrator7 stone in reply toAnon-E-Mouse

No problem Mouse, it appears we're on the same wavelength! :D

Anon-E-Mouse profile image
Anon-E-Mouse

Hi Jumberly,

Had a quick look and it does sound crazy! The wholemeal bread/toast is bewildering, but the white bread is quoted at 100g, whereas the one with 10g butter is for one slice, so that may explain that apparent discrepancy. From what I can see this appears to come from Nutracheck and not the NHS as such. Personally I avoid bread and butter if possible, it's one of my downfalls (and I have many!)

Just a thought, does bread get lighter when it's toasted, so you can have more slices for 100g and that would make it more calories?

Mostly I tend to use the calorie checker/counter on MFP, and then add a dash of common sense, plus check the calories quoted on the packet/tin/jar that the food comes in. I also have a calorie counter book, old, but still gives me an idea of what is what!

Mouse 🐭

Flossie1920 profile image
Flossie1920

Oh dear - a bit of an eye opener there tut tut tut silly NHS must try harder..

IndigoBlue61 profile image
IndigoBlue61

Calorie counting is confusing, and you need to be a bit of a detective as well as a mathematician!! Food labels aren't any easier to use either as some quote "per serving " 😕 But as moreless says, it is important to weigh everything initially until you get to know the calories. Bread varies a lot due to size, many thicker seeded slices weigh almost 50g per slice, 1/3 of my daily carbohydrate allowance 😕

Hope you can get your head around things, 😊 Anything you can't understand, just ask 😊

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