These low-calorie alternatives provide new ideas for old favourites. When making a food choice, remember to consider vitamins and minerals. Some foods provide most of their calories from sugar and fat but give you few, if any, vitamins and minerals.
This guide is not meant to be an exhaustive list. We stress reading labels to find out just how many calories are in the specific products you decide to buy.
Higher-fat foods |
Lower-fat foods |
Dairy products |
|
Evaporated whole milk | Evaporated fat-free (skim) or reduced-fat (2%) milk |
Whole milk | Low-fat (1%), reduced-fat (2%), or fat-free (skim) milk |
Ice cream | Sorbet, sherbet, low fat or fat-free frozen yoghurt, or ice |
Whipping cream | Imitation whipped cream (made with fat-free [skim] milk) |
Sour cream | Plain low-fat yoghurt |
Cream cheese | "Light" cream cheese or fat-free cream cheese |
Cheese (cheddar, Swiss, gouda) | Reduced-calorie cheese, low-calorie processed cheeses, fat-free cheese |
Regular (4%) cottage cheese | Low-fat (1%) or reduced-fat (2%) cottage cheese |
Whole milk mozzarella cheese | Part-skim milk, low-moisture mozzarella cheese |
Whole milk ricotta cheese | Part-skim milk ricotta cheese |
Coffee cream or non-dairy creamer (liquid, powder) | Low-fat (1%) or reduced-fat (2%) milk or non-fat dry milk powder |
Cereals, grains and pastas |
|
Ramen noodles | Rice or noodles (spaghetti, macaroni etc.) |
Pasta with white sauce (alfredo) | Pasta with red sauce (marinara) |
Pasta with cheese sauce | Pasta with vegetables (primavera) |
Granola | Bran flakes, crispy rice etc. |
Cooked oatmeal | |
Reduced-fat granola | |
Meat, fish and poultry |
|
Coldcuts or lunch meats (bologna, salami, liverwurst etc.) | Low-fat coldcuts (95 to 97% fat-free lunch meats, low-fat pressed meats) |
Hot dogs (regular) | Lower-fat hot dogs |
Bacon or sausage | Lean ham |
Regular ground beef | Extra lean ground beef (read labels) |
Poultry with skin | Poultry without skin (white meat) |
Oil-packed tuna | Water-packed tuna (rinse to reduce sodium content) |
Beef (chuck, rib, brisket) | Beef (round, loin) (trimmed of external fat) |
Pork (spareribs, untrimmed loin) | Pork tenderloin or trimmed lean smoked ham |
Frozen breaded fish or fried fish (homemade or commercial) | Fish or shellfish, unbreaded (fresh, frozen, canned in water) |
Whole eggs | Egg whites or egg substitutes |
Frozen ready-made meals (containing more than 13 grams of fat per serving) | Frozen ready-made meals (containing less than 13 grams of fat per serving and lower in sodium) |
Baked goods |
|
Croissants | Hard French rolls or soft brown rolls |
Doughnuts, sweet rolls, muffins, scones or pastries | English muffins, bagels, reduced-fat or fat-free muffins or scones |
Party crackers | Low-fat crackers (choose lower in sodium) |
Cake (chocolate, yellow) | Cake (angel food, white, gingerbread) |
Cookies | Reduced-fat or fat-free cookies (ginger snaps) (compare calorie level) |
Snacks and sweets |
|
Nuts | Popcorn (air-popped or light microwave), fruits, vegetables |
Ice cream, cones or bars | Frozen yoghurt or frozen fruit |
Custards or puddings (made with whole milk) | Puddings (made with skim milk) |
Fats, oils and salad dressings |
|
Regular margarine or butter | Light spread margarines, diet margarine |
Regular mayonnaise | Light or diet mayonnaise or mustard |
Regular salad dressings | Reduced-calorie or fat-free salad dressings, lemon juice, or plain, herb flavoured, or wine vinegar |
Butter or margarine on toast or bread | Jam, or honey on bread or toast |
Oils, shortening or lard | Non-stick cooking spray for stir-frying or sautéing |
As a substitute for oil or butter, use applesauce or prune puree in baked goods | |
Miscellaneous | |
Canned cream soups | Canned broth-based soups |
Canned beans and viennas | Canned baked beans in tomato sauce |
Gravy (homemade with fat and/or milk) | Gravy mixes made with water or homemade with the fat skimmed off and fat-free milk |
Fudge sauce | Chocolate syrup |
Avocado on sandwiches | Cucumber slices or lettuce leaves |
Guacamole dip | Salsa |
Source: National Institutes of Health, USA