Find out whether gouda cheese is good for weight loss or not so you don’t mess up your efforts while enjoying this tasty food.
Gouda cheese is somewhat higher in calories but also high in protein, vitamins, and minerals.
In turn, the weight loss effects of gouda cheese will depend a lot on your personal situation and the rest of your diet.
On the one hand, gouda cheese could help you feel full enough to eat less of foods that are worse for weight loss.
Eating enough protein is important for preserving or building muscle too.
On the flip side, just adding gouda cheese on top of your current diet will likely not get you to your weight loss goals.
Even if you compensate in other areas, there is a way to eat too much gouda cheese too.
In any case, there are “safer” food categories and more weight-loss-friendly cheeses to choose from.
Calories in gouda cheese
The amount of calories in gouda is the first detail to look at when figuring out whether this cheese is good for weight loss.
This number does not say everything but it is a helpful first step.
One example of gouda cheese contains around 356 calories per 100 grams (1). 1 slice of gouda cheese (28 g) is about 100 calories.
When it comes to cheeses, this is somewhat average.
However, other food groups like vegetables and fruits tend to be lower in calories (although they do not quite have the same good taste and cheesy texture).
So far, gouda cheese does not look that great for weight loss due to the high number of calories.
At the same time, you do still want to see what sources these calories come from.
Protein in gouda cheese for weight loss
One of the main gouda calorie sources to check is protein. This macronutrient tends to be helpful while losing weight for a few reasons.
Before going into the details, gouda cheese contains around 24.9 grams of protein per 100 grams (1).
To compare with another high protein food, mackerel contains around 24.9 grams of protein per 100 grams too (2).
There are cheeses that are even higher in protein but it is fair to say that gouda does a good job in this area.
One of the first benefits of protein for weight loss is that it is relatively filling.
Since many people find it hard to stick to their diets due to hunger (and cravings for cookies), this aspect of gouda cheese can be valuable.
Additionally, eating enough protein is important for preserving and building muscle.
Even if you don’t quite plan to gain 22 pounds (10 kg) in muscle, any extra mass will help you burn more calories throughout the day.
So while gouda cheese is somewhat higher in calories, a nice amount of these come from the helpful protein macronutrient.
Vitamins and minerals in gouda cheese
It is hard to put into exact numbers how much any vitamins and minerals in gouda cheese benefit your weight loss.
Partly because it will depend on the rest of your diet and other details too.
However, since a variety of vitamins and minerals do play a role in your metabolism in one way or another, it can be helpful to check what gouda cheese offers in this area.
100 grams of gouda cheese contains the following vitamins and minerals (1):
- Calcium: 70% of the DV (Daily Value)
- Phosphorus: 55% of the DV
- Sodium: 34% of the DV
- Vitamin B12: 26% of the DV
- Zinc: 26% of the DV
And other vitamins and minerals in smaller amounts.
Gouda cheese is relatively high in vitamins and minerals compared to many other foods.
This will typically benefit your weight loss or at least your general health slightly.
Does gouda cheese make you lose or gain weight?
Overall, gouda cheese is somewhat higher in calories but a nice amount of these come from protein and this food contains nice amounts of vitamins and minerals.
In turn, it is hard to say anything general about what gouda cheese will do to your weight loss efforts.
On the one hand, gouda cheese could be filling enough to help you eat less of foods that are worse for weight loss.
At the same time, you are potentially increasing your protein intake to healthier levels too.
These things would make it so gouda cheese can help you lose weight.
On the other hand, you still need to make the changes above.
If you just add gouda cheese on top of your current diet, you will likely not see positive results.
It is also possible to overeat gouda cheese in the sense of not compensating enough in other areas.
So while gouda cheese could help you lose weight, there are “safer” food options too.
Different uses for gouda cheese
Another thing to keep in mind is that you can add gouda cheese to your weight loss diet in different ways.
Some of these are better than others for getting results.
A few examples of weight-loss-friendly ways to eat gouda include on its own or with other healthy ingredients like a salad.
Sandwiches with gouda cheese are often not optimal but there are worse foods out there.
And lastly, you (unfortunately) mainly want to avoid gouda cheese in combination with dishes like pasta, lasagna, and pizza while trying to lose weight.
Most sauces and dressings with gouda cheese are also not preferable for weight loss.
