How to Calculate Calories From Carbohydrate Grams

A calorie is a unit that measures the amount of energy that food provides to the body. The body turns food into fuel after it's been eaten, burning it to produce energy. Calories in food come from carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram, the same as proteins. Fats contain 9 calories per gram. Although calories from carbohydrates are all the same, their nutritional values aren't.

Instructions

• 1

  Find the nutritional index on the food packaging. The index lists the number of carbohydrate grams per serving. For fresh foods or for foods without packaging, use an online tool to help find the serving size and nutritional index.

• 2

  Multiply the number of servings eaten by the number of carbohydrate grams per serving to get the total number of carbohydrate grams consumed.

• 3

  Multiply the total number of carbohydrate grams eaten by 4 to get the carbohydrate calorie intake.

• 4

  Be sure to have at least a 1,200 calorie intake per day spread over all food groups outlined in the Food Pyramid Guidelines.