In this day and age, healthy eating is a big deal. Advancements in scientific knowledge and research mean that more and more is known and can be surmised about the possible health benefits and drawbacks of different foods.

This can create a dilemma for most cheese lovers, as the high sodium and saturated fat content of many kinds of cheese are often deemed to be detrimental to health. In this article, we are going to think a little about this, but focus more on the issue of calories and concentrate on the specific example of calories in provolone cheese.

Calories, things are starting to heat up

Calories are a unit of energy often used when we talk about food. There are a few different scientific considerations when discussing exactly what calories mean, to do with atmospheric pressure and starting temperature, but put simply the so-called food calorie (Cal) is the amount of energy needed to increase the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius. 

For us human beings, calorie intake is an important measure related to our health and well-being. This is due to the fact that calorie consumption is closely related to our weight. If we take more calories into our bodies than the energy we consume in our daily activities, we will begin to gain weight. This is because the fat, protein or carbohydrates containing this energy are not used up and therefore are deposited in our bodies. Conversely, if we take into our bodies fewer calories than we use in our daily activities, we will start to lose weight as the excess material deposited in our bodies will begin to be burned up in order to produce the extra calories that we need.

Provolone, a cheesy example

Provolone is a semi-hard Italian cheese. It is produced using the pasta filata method, often known as stretched curd method in English. This involves the milk being curdled, often by mixing with whey extract and rennet, an enzyme containing substance from animal stomachs. The curds are then cut, excess whey is drained off and left to rest. After this, the curds are soaked for several hours in a bath of hot whey or water, until they float, which indicates that the majority of the excess liquid in them has been removed. The final step in the process is for the curds to be kneaded until they reach the desired consistency, usually a soft, elastic ball. 

In the case of some cheeses, such as mozzarella, the production process is essentially complete at this stage. However, for provolone, the cheese is now put through an aging process, with different variations depending on what the desired final product is.

With regard to calories, it is estimated that a one-ounce slice (that’s 28.35 grams for those of us on the metric system!) of provolone cheese contains 98 calories. To put this in context, an average sized 35-year-old female would need to walk for 27 mins, jog for 11 mins or swim for 8 minutes to burn up this amount of energy.

Health, it’s not just about the calories

Judging by the above-mentioned information, it’s not going to be a good idea to eat too much provolone cheese each day. Just one slice requires a reasonable amount of physical activity to burn it off. However, when we think about the healthiness of particular foods, there are a number of other factors to take into consideration.

On the negative side, it is also important to think about how much saturated fat and sodium a particular food contains. High saturated fat intake is generally associated with heart disease and high sodium intake is linked to blood pressure problems. Our above-mentioned provolone slice doesn’t do too well on either of these counts either, although it’s not completely disastrous. A one-ounce slice of provolone contains approximately 2.9 grams of saturated fat (roughly 15% of the daily recommended intake for an average person) and 149 milligrams of sodium (about 6% of the recommended daily intake).

Once again, these are obviously both quite high if someone consumes a lot of provolone per day. However, they are not desperately large if provolone consumption is moderate and combined with other foods.

The upside of cheese

When thinking about cheese, there are also a number of potential positive benefits of consuming it. Cheese is a source of calcium and protein, both important parts of a healthy diet, as well as a number of vitamins and minerals, also important in the human diet, such as vitamin A, B12, riboflavin, zinc and phosphorous.

There is some evidence that cheese reduces acidity in the mouth when eaten, and as such could help prevent tooth decay caused by acid produced from eating sugary products. There are also some suggestions from different studies that cheese may help people lose weight, protect against certain cancers and even be good for your heart. However, a lot of this research is non-conclusive.

The primary and most likely benefit from cheese is then the high calcium and protein content, which can be good for teeth and bones and muscle function.

It’s all about moderation

At the end of the day, a cheese lover is faced with something of a dilemma. There are a few potential health benefits of eating cheese, but as we have seen the high saturated fat and sodium content of cheeses such as provolone, not to mention their high-calorie count, mean that there are also potential negative effects of eating cheese. There’s a saying that goes ‘you can’t have too much of a good thing’, although this would seem not to be true in the case of cheeses.

That being said, there’s also another wise phrase which goes, ‘all things in moderation’. It would appear then that this is the best approach when it comes to enjoying provolone and indeed many other kinds of cheese. Enjoy them by all mean, but use them more as a flavoring or accompaniment to a meal rather than the main thing. Eat more of strong tasting varieties, such as provolone piccante, so that you can use less, but still sense the flavor. Finally, look for reduced fat versions of your favorite cheeses or eat lesser of them and complement them with other lower fat types of cheese.