Among adolescents with obesity, consuming 500 extra calories per day above energy needs leads to a 20–30% increase in carbohydrate intake during dinner compared to when energy intake matches energy needs.

In adolescents with obesity, increasing daily physical activity and food intake by 500 calories total leads to a 35% reduction in the amount of food eaten at dinner compared to when energy intake and expenditure are lower, suggesting better alignment between how much energy is used and how much is consumed.

In adolescents with obesity, combining regular physical activity with a controlled increase in daily calorie intake leads to reduced food consumption at dinner and lower reported feelings of hunger and desire to eat throughout the day, compared to conditions with lower energy expenditure and intake.

In adolescents with obesity, consuming 500 more calories per day than needed leads to a 25–30% reduction in overall feelings of hunger and desire to eat throughout the day, compared to consuming fewer calories.

In adolescents with obesity, consuming significantly more calories than needed is associated with a measurable increase in preference for sweet foods, suggesting that higher energy intake may alter how the brain responds to rewarding foods.

When healthy young men ate the same number of calories but swapped carbs for fat for just three days, their body’s response to sugar changed—blood sugar went up, insulin came out slower, and a gut hormone went up.