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Nutrient density is not a measure of calories per mass or volume (energy density). This is what nutrient density means in the context of nutritional science:[1]

Nutrient density is not a measure of calories per mass or volume (energy density). This is what nutrient density means in the context of nutritional science:[1] > The nutrient density standard, as defined by the FDA, is the ratio of the amount of beneficial nutrients relative to the food’s energy content per reference amount customarily consumed. The more nutrient-dense foods are those that contribute more beneficial nutrients than calories to the overall diet. Fruits and vegetables generally have higher nutrient density than most other food categories:[2] > As expected, we found that fruits and vegetables were nutrient-dense in relation to their energy content. > However, the data unambiguously showed that fruits and vegetables were nutrient-rich in relation to the little energy that they provide. Although fruits and vegetables suffer when assessed on the calories/price ratio, they represent extremely good value when assessed using the nutrient density score and the nutrient to price ratio. Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), the most common source of added sugars, contributes to obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D):[3] > Consumption of SSBs has increased markedly across the globe in recent decades, tracking closely with the growing burdens of obesity. These beverages are currently the largest source of added sugar intake and the top source of daily energy in the US diet. The cumulative evidence from observational studies and experimental trials is sufficient to conclude that regular consumption of SSBs causes excess weight gain and these beverages are unique dietary contributors to obesity and T2D. Compelling evidence indicates that reducing SSBs will have significant impact on the prevalence of obesity and its related diseases, especially T2D. Consuming at least 2 servings of fruit and 3 servings of vegetables per day (excepting fruit juices, starchy vegetables, and potatoes) is associated with lower mortality:[4] > In the 2 prospective cohorts with many repeated measurements of diet and up to 30 years of follow-up, we observed that a higher intake of fruit and vegetables was associated with a lower risk of total mortality and cause-specific mortality in a nonlinear manner. Our analysis in the NHS and the HPFS and in a meta-analysis of 26 prospective cohort studies documented that intake of ≈5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily was associated with the lowest mortality, and higher intake was not associated with additional risk reductions in mortality. The thresholds of risk reduction in mortality were 2 servings daily for fruit intake and 3 servings daily for vegetable intake. Higher intakes of most subgroups of fruit and vegetables were inversely associated with mortality, whereas intakes of starchy vegetables, fruit juices, and potatoes were not associated with mortality. And again, there is no evidence that fruits and whole grains in general are unhealthy in a balanced diet for most people. Eating fruits is not equivalent to combining sodas with multivitamins. Fruits have fiber, antioxidants,[5] and other compounds that are absent from multivitamins. [1] https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/82/4/721/4607427 https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/82/4/721/4607427 [2] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7446672_A_Nutrient_Density_Standard_for_Vegetables_and_Fruits_Nutrients_per_Calorie_and_Nutrients_per_Unit_Cost https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7446672_A_Nutrient_... [3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5325726/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5325726/ [4] https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.120.048996 https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.120.0... [5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_antioxidants_in_food https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_antioxidants_in_food

qeternity 5y ago
You really, really do not understand correlation vs causation. And you're so convinced you're right, you're hawking terrible science. Every claim you make is hedged: "...in a balanced diet". Yeah of course, in a balanced diet, nothing is unhealthy because by definition the unhealthy bits are balanced out somewhere else. What are you actually trying to prove here? Your grasp on these topics is tenuous at best. Antioxidants? Do you only get your nutritional advice from Whole Foods? Do you know how weak the science around dietary antioxidants is and our understsanding of free radicals in general? Fine, don't like my soda analogy...mix some psyllium husk in with your soda. Now you have fiber...this doesn't change the metabolic pathway in any material way. You don't understand what I'm talking about. Honestly, these kinds of views are why the American diet is so poor. You so desperately want to prove a narrative, irrespective of what the science actually says. You're focused on nutrient density, as opposed to the real issue: calorie density. We don't need to run around inventing new standards for "nutrient density"...we need to get people to eat less. And most people are over eating due to chronically elevated insulin levels and reduced insulin sensitivity on the back of carbohydrate based diets. People aren't dying prematurely from specific vitamin, mineral, or EFA/EAA deficiency. They are dying because they are obese. Even a horrible diet is going to provide most nutrients in sufficient quantities. Outside of a select few nutrients, the human body can synthesize and up/down regulate processes to accommodate varying levels of "nutrients"...this is not what people in the developed world grapple with. But sure, let's all eat wheat cereal with oat milk and fruit and honey for every meal. So healthy.
- commoner 5y ago
  I used the words "balanced diet" to rule out, for example, someone eating only fruits and nothing else. I hedge my words carefully because I don't want to make overly broad claims that are not backed by evidence, as you are doing. I do understand what you are talking about, and I have been pointing out that some of your claims are contradicted by or not supported by evidence. You're accusing me of all kinds of things without providing a single piece of evidence to back up your claims. You're also putting words in my mouth that I never said, and claiming I take positions that I don't support. For example, I never recommended oat milk (which is not a whole grain product), honey (which is classified by the FDA as added sugar when not sold as a single ingredient), or breakfast cereals (which are often sold sweetened with added sugar and usually not whole grain). That is a straw man. I agree that people who are consuming too many calories in their diet should reduce the amount of calories that they consume. However, that has nothing to do with the fact that fruits can be part of a healthy diet, which is backed by evidence from a wide body of research and not contradicted by any evidence that fruits are unhealthy for most people. If fruits are unhealthy for most people as you claim, you should have no problem finding peer-reviewed research of similar or higher quality that backs up your assertion. Here's yet another review that confirms that fruit consumption has stronger anti-obesity than pro-obesity effects in most cases, which also explains why supplements and soda are not equivalent to fruits: > Previous studies of the effects of fruit on obesity have shown that their anti-obesity effects are greater than their pro-obesity effects in most cases, as demonstrated in this review. Moreover, the final outcomes of these anti-obesity studies support the inclusion of higher amounts of fruit in our daily food intake to reduce weight, as well as promote a healthy life style by increasing physical activity and reducing the intake of sugar and fat. However, most types of fruit contain large amounts of simple sugars, which are well-known contributory factors to obesity and obesity-related diseases. Therefore, the high level intake of particular forms of fruit such as fruit juice is not advisable in certain age groups, especially children. In addition, it has been suggested that plant fiber and phytochemicals may be responsible for the anti-obesity effects of fruit, but cereals are also rich in phytochemicals and fiber yet they have no remarkable anti-obesity effects. Therefore, more human trials are required to address these two mechanisms. In addition to the possible anti-obesity mechanisms discussed above, we consider that various other important unknown components present in fruit may be responsible for preventing obesity. Furthermore, the anti-obesity properties of known fruit components need to be verified. Thus, future research should be focusing on identifying anti-obesity components in fruit as an urgent and important task in order to understand the scientific mechanism of obesity but also to develop a method for controlling obesity by increasing fruit consumption. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5084020/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5084020/

qeternity 5y ago

You really, really do not understand correlation vs causation. And you're so convinced you're right, you're hawking terrible science. Every claim you make is hedged: "...in a balanced diet". Yeah of course, in a balanced diet, nothing is unhealthy because by definition the unhealthy bits are balanced out somewhere else. What are you actually trying to prove here? Your grasp on these topics is tenuous at best. Antioxidants? Do you only get your nutritional advice from Whole Foods? Do you know how weak the science around dietary antioxidants is and our understsanding of free radicals in general? Fine, don't like my soda analogy...mix some psyllium husk in with your soda. Now you have fiber...this doesn't change the metabolic pathway in any material way. You don't understand what I'm talking about. Honestly, these kinds of views are why the American diet is so poor. You so desperately want to prove a narrative, irrespective of what the science actually says. You're focused on nutrient density, as opposed to the real issue: calorie density. We don't need to run around inventing new standards for "nutrient density"...we need to get people to eat less. And most people are over eating due to chronically elevated insulin levels and reduced insulin sensitivity on the back of carbohydrate based diets. People aren't dying prematurely from specific vitamin, mineral, or EFA/EAA deficiency. They are dying because they are obese. Even a horrible diet is going to provide most nutrients in sufficient quantities. Outside of a select few nutrients, the human body can synthesize and up/down regulate processes to accommodate varying levels of "nutrients"...this is not what people in the developed world grapple with. But sure, let's all eat wheat cereal with oat milk and fruit and honey for every meal. So healthy.

commoner 5y ago
I used the words "balanced diet" to rule out, for example, someone eating only fruits and nothing else. I hedge my words carefully because I don't want to make overly broad claims that are not backed by evidence, as you are doing. I do understand what you are talking about, and I have been pointing out that some of your claims are contradicted by or not supported by evidence. You're accusing me of all kinds of things without providing a single piece of evidence to back up your claims. You're also putting words in my mouth that I never said, and claiming I take positions that I don't support. For example, I never recommended oat milk (which is not a whole grain product), honey (which is classified by the FDA as added sugar when not sold as a single ingredient), or breakfast cereals (which are often sold sweetened with added sugar and usually not whole grain). That is a straw man. I agree that people who are consuming too many calories in their diet should reduce the amount of calories that they consume. However, that has nothing to do with the fact that fruits can be part of a healthy diet, which is backed by evidence from a wide body of research and not contradicted by any evidence that fruits are unhealthy for most people. If fruits are unhealthy for most people as you claim, you should have no problem finding peer-reviewed research of similar or higher quality that backs up your assertion. Here's yet another review that confirms that fruit consumption has stronger anti-obesity than pro-obesity effects in most cases, which also explains why supplements and soda are not equivalent to fruits: > Previous studies of the effects of fruit on obesity have shown that their anti-obesity effects are greater than their pro-obesity effects in most cases, as demonstrated in this review. Moreover, the final outcomes of these anti-obesity studies support the inclusion of higher amounts of fruit in our daily food intake to reduce weight, as well as promote a healthy life style by increasing physical activity and reducing the intake of sugar and fat. However, most types of fruit contain large amounts of simple sugars, which are well-known contributory factors to obesity and obesity-related diseases. Therefore, the high level intake of particular forms of fruit such as fruit juice is not advisable in certain age groups, especially children. In addition, it has been suggested that plant fiber and phytochemicals may be responsible for the anti-obesity effects of fruit, but cereals are also rich in phytochemicals and fiber yet they have no remarkable anti-obesity effects. Therefore, more human trials are required to address these two mechanisms. In addition to the possible anti-obesity mechanisms discussed above, we consider that various other important unknown components present in fruit may be responsible for preventing obesity. Furthermore, the anti-obesity properties of known fruit components need to be verified. Thus, future research should be focusing on identifying anti-obesity components in fruit as an urgent and important task in order to understand the scientific mechanism of obesity but also to develop a method for controlling obesity by increasing fruit consumption. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5084020/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5084020/