Eating style
Volume eating
Filling your plate with foods that have few calories per gram. How energy density works, what the research shows, and how to lower it in everyday cooking.
How it works
Energy density is the number of calories in each gram of food. Water adds weight and volume with no calories, and fibre supplies only about 2 kcal per gram, so vegetables, fruit, soups, stews and cooked grains are low. Fat has 9 kcal per gram, so added oils and fatty foods push it up. Volume eating, also known as Volumetrics, builds meals mostly from the low end.
What the research shows
The review behind the 2010 US Dietary Guidelines looked at 17 studies in adults and concluded there was strong and consistent evidence that eating patterns lower in energy density improve weight loss and weight maintenance. A 2022 meta-analysis of 31 experiments found that people served lower-density food ate substantially fewer calories across the day and barely made up for it at later meals.
The effect on body weight itself is less certain: in the five studies that measured it, the difference was about 0.7 kg and not statistically significant. Energy density is a tool for making a calorie target feel like more food. It does not replace the target.
Putting it on the plate
Add vegetables, fruit or pulses to the dishes you already cook, choose soups and stews more often, and measure cooking oil instead of pouring it. Keep the protein: lean meat, fish, eggs, yoghurt and tofu are filling for their calories. Nuts, seeds, avocado and olive oil are energy-dense but nutritious, so portion them and keep them in.
The recipe search cannot calculate calories per gram, so the shelf below uses a stand-in: modest calories with plenty of fibre per serving. Sort any search by “Protein per calorie” to find the other half of a filling plate, and use the fibre filter to set your own floor.
Worth knowing
- Low energy density is not the same as nutritious. Do not cut out nuts, seeds, avocado or olive oil because they are calorie-dense.
- A sudden jump in vegetables, pulses and fibre can cause bloating. Increase gradually and drink enough fluid.
- If you have, or have had, an eating disorder, filling up on very low calorie food to suppress hunger is not a safe strategy. Speak to your care team.
Common questions
Do I still need to count calories?
If you have a calorie target, yes. Lower energy density makes it easier to stay within the target while eating a satisfying amount, but studies have not shown that it reliably lowers weight by itself.
Which foods are lowest in energy density?
Foods with a lot of water or fibre: most vegetables and fruit, soups, stews, and cooked grains and pasta. Foods low in water and high in fat, such as oils, nuts and seeds, are at the other end.
Sources
- British Nutrition Foundation: Energy density
- Pérez-Escamilla et al., Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (2012): Dietary energy density and body weight in adults and children, a systematic review
- Robinson et al., International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity (2022): Effect of manipulating food energy density on daily energy intake, systematic review and meta-analysis
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Speak to a doctor or registered dietitian about your own situation.
