'calorie-poor' originates from the combination of 'calorie,' which comes from the French word 'calorie,' and 'poor,' from Old English 'pōr,' meaning 'lacking.'

'calorie' was adopted into English from French in the 19th century, while 'poor' has been part of the English language since the Middle Ages.

Initially, 'calorie' referred to a unit of heat, but it evolved to represent energy in food. 'Poor' has consistently meant lacking or deficient.