# What is the most dense calorie food? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 25, 2007, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447 "2007-09-25T17:41:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/1 "2007-09-25T17:41:19Z")
This has already been asked before, but I couldn’t find it. Is there a food that is so dense in calories that you will gain more weight than the weight of the food itself? Is that even possible? i.e. 3500 calories of food = one pound of weight gain. Are there any foods where a pound of it has over 3500 calories? I know… it’s probably a dumb question. ---
**Author:** ![photopat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e95f7d/32.png) [@photopat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/photopat)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/2 "2007-09-25T17:44:18Z")
Caloric content may vary, but a pound is a pound. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/3 "2007-09-25T18:11:23Z")
Fat in adipose tissue is always associated with water, in a ratio of about 1 pound of water to every 6 pounds of fat. So eat a pound of pure fat (and drink a bit of water), and you’ll gain about one and a sixth pounds of adipose tissue. The figure of 3500 kilocalories per pound is for adipose tissue. The figure for pure fat (with no associated water) is about 4100 kilocalories per pound. ---
**Author:** ![EmAnJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@EmAnJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmAnJ)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/4 "2007-09-25T20:03:54Z")
I asked that question and it was a no. I’ll see if I can find a link for you. ---
**Author:** ![EmAnJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@EmAnJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmAnJ)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/5 "2007-09-25T20:05:51Z")
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=412637&highlight=calories](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=412637&highlight=calories) ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-most-dense-calorie-food/420447/6 "2007-09-25T20:36:31Z")
[QUOTE=bibliophage] Fat in adipose tissue is always associated with water, in a ratio of about 1 pound of water to every 6 pounds of fat. So eat a pound of pure fat (and drink a bit of water), and you’ll gain about one and a sixth pounds of adipose tissue. The figure of 3500 kilocalories per pound is for adipose tissue. The figure for pure fat (with no associated water) is about 4100 kilocalories per pound. [/QUOTE] 😕 My understanding is that the water only comes when the fat is metabolized, as a result of the various chemical reactions. Fat is hydrophobic, so there shouldn’t be molecules of water floating around in the liposome in an adipose cell. Water in the associated cellular structure around the adipose cells, sure, but not in the fat. Have multiple nutrition, tissue structure, and cell biology classes led me astray?