Re: Will eating celery starve you more quickly?

Hi there.  I hope you're not contemplating trying this.  Although I have 
experimented with several varieties of diets, I have never thought of 
starving myself by solely eating any food, let alone celery, so I can't 
give you any first hand experiences.  But I will endeavor to enlighten you 
with some scientific principles to demonstrate why negative calories do 
not exist, no matter which way you slice it.

There are a number of principles you have to understand.  The first is, 
the potential energy that is stored in food.  We measure this energy in an 
instrument known as a bomb calorimeter, and define the energy it provides 
as calories.  Our bodies then utilize the calories to sustain life.

The second important principle is, that although the energy from food is 
transformed from one form to another, there is no loss of energy from the 
transfer of food into our bodies.  Why?  Because it follows the law of 
conservation of energy which states that "energy is neither created or 
destroyed during a reaction.  It merely changes from one form to another, 
but the total amount of energy remains the same, regardless of what form 
the energy has changed into."  How does this apply to your question?
Essentially this means that the calories derived from any food, including 
celery, cannot decrease or increase.  Its caloric value remains the same.

The third principle is that not all the potential energy that is stored in 
food is biologically available.  Small amounts of energy are used up to 
digest food, however, I emphasize SMALL amounts.  For example, chewing 
celery burns about the same number of calories as sitting.  This amounts 
to just 1.5 calories, not nearly enough to negate the total calories 
obtained from celery.  Truth be told, there is no food that will produce 
negative calories.  

Furthermore, the standard caloric tables have factored in the conversion 
of energy expended for digestion, by deducting said amounts from the 
potential energy of food, as measured in the bomb calorimeter.  Therefore, 
when you read that a one 8 inch stalk of raw Pascal celery, weighing 40 
grams supplies 6 calories, it means 6 calories, not more - not less!
And so it follows that death would ensue more quickly through self-
starvation than if one decided to eat only celery  At least the celery 
would provide you with some calories and nutrients, albeit precious 
little.  Although, just to sustain life, one would have to eat between 200 
to 300 stalks of celery a day.  No mean feat, given that the average 
American eats about 90 to 100 stalks per year!  

Even if one managed to eat this much celery, they would only succeed in 
prolonging a much slower, more agonizing death, as diseases from 
malnutrion would take over.  Frankly, neither scenario seems very 
appealing to me.  

Oh, and by the way, as Mark Twain said, "Be careful about reading health 
books, you may die of a misprint."  

Hope that helps and good luck.  

Peter Bosani.

References:  Applied Nutrition & Diet Therapy - Burtis, Davis, Martin.
             Chemistry for the Health Sciences - Sackheim, Lehman
             Van Nostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia - 5th edition.