World’s biggest eaters revealed – can you guess which country scoffs more than 4,000 calories a day? It’s not the US!
MORE than two-thirds of people in the US are overweight or obese — and new research shows why.
The average American consumes 3,868 calories a day — the second-highest number of any country in the world.
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The United States was trumped only by Bahrain, where people eat 4,012 calories a day.
The numbers are based on insights from Oxford University scientists at OurWorldInData, using statistics from the United Nations.
Ireland took bronze with 3,850 points, with Belgium (3,824) and Turkey (3,762) completing the top five.
The UK was 26th overall, with the average Brit consuming 3,422 calories every 24 hours.
In comparison, residents of the Central African Republic consume only 1,642.
Burundi (1,697), Madagascar (1,771), Zimbabwe (1,853) and Lesotho (1,922) completed the last five.
The NHS recommends women eat no more than 2,000 calories a day and men should stick to around 2,500.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues similar guidelines, with a daily limit of 2,000 for everyone.
More than 94 percent of the countries included in the study exceeded this limit.
The average was 2,947 – roughly what is eaten in Indonesia, Mongolia and the Seychelles.
The Food and Agriculture Organization’s data was based on the average total amount of food purchased per household and therefore did not account for waste.
However, experts warn that excessive calorie consumption puts you at risk of obesity and a host of related health complications.
These most commonly include type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, some cancers and stroke.
The NHS says: “Obesity is an increasingly common problem because the environment we live in makes it difficult for many people to eat healthily and get enough physical activity.”
“It can be difficult to deal with. Losing weight takes time and commitment.”
“It’s important to remember that losing a seemingly small amount of weight, about three percent or more of your original body weight, and maintaining that weight for life increases your risk of developing complications associated with obesity, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease can significantly reduce disease.”
How many calories do people around the world eat every day?
- Bahrain 4,012
- United States 3,868
- Ireland 3,851
- Belgium 3,824
- Türkiye 3,762
- Austria 3,739
- Germany 3,648
- Italy 3,621
- Qatar 3,609
- Romania 3,600
- France 3,582
- Israel 3,570
- Canada 3,569
- Poland 3,539
- Algeria 3,519
- Luxembourg 3,497
- Portugal 3,489
- Norway 3,473
- Montenegro 3,469
- Netherlands 3,460
- Serbia 3,460
- Tunisia 3,449
- Lebanon 3,444
- Denmark 3,433
- United Kingdom 3,423
- Moldova 3,418
- Russia 3,414
- Switzerland 3,405
- Iceland 3,405
- South Korea 3,405
- Australia 3,399
- Armenia 3,396
- Kuwait 3,388
- Czech Republic 3,387
- China 3,378
- Kazakhstan 3,377
- Morocco 3,374
- Finland 3,370
- Oman 3,369
- Azerbaijan 3,366
- Lithuania 3,357
- Argentina 3,350
- Cuba 3,347
- Brazil 3,333
- Hungary 3,321
- Albania 3,314
- Spain 3,311
- Bosnia and Herzegovina 3,310
- Greece 3,309
- Bhutan 3,283
- United Arab Emirates 3,276
- Uzbekistan 3,269
- Belarus 3,250
- Mexico 3,248
- Uruguay 3,246
- Libya 3,241
- Georgia 3,223
- Latvia 3,210
- Saudi Arabia 3,203
- Hong Kong 3,197
- Estonia 3,168
- Croatia 3,167
- Sweden 3,167
- Egypt 3,167
- Guyana 3,131
- Chile 3,124
- North Macedonia 3,118
- Slovenia 3,097
- Ghana 3,089
- Barbados 3,081
- New Zealand 3,062
- St. Vincent and the Grenadines 3,056
- Viet Nam 3,026
- Costa Rica 3,015
- Mauritania 3,013
- Cyprus 3,012
- Slovakia 3,006
- Macau 2,996
- Panama 2,994
- Mauritius 2,994
- Paraguay 2,986
- Taiwan 2,984
- Iran 2,972
- Ukraine 2,967
- Colombia 2,957
- Seychelles 2,952
- Mongolia 2,946
- Indonesia 2,942
- Dominican Republic 2,940
- Malaysia 2,934
- Ivory Coast 2,929
- Dominica 2,927
- Myanmar 2,924
- Kiribati 2,907
- New Caledonia 2,899
- South Africa 2,882
- Bulgaria 2,881
- Nepal 2,877
- Malta 2,877
- Samoa 2,857
- Guinea 2,854
- Fiji 2,832.
- Jamaica 2,825
- Cambodia 2,824
- Micronesia (country) 2,820
- Peru 2,816
- Sri Lanka 2,805
- Cameroon 2,800
- St Kitts and Nevis 2,799
- Philippines 2,790
- Thailand 2,788
- Belize 2,787
- Senegal 2,786
- Mali 2,782
- Tajikistan 2,780
- Turkmenistan 2,778
- Vanuatu 2,770
- El Salvador 2,768
- French Polynesia 2,765
- Laos 2,755
- Nauru 2,742
- Kyrgyzstan 2,738
- Benin 2,730
- Trinidad and Tobago 2,727
- Japan 2,705
- Guatemala 2,699
- Saint Lucia 2,694
- Burkina Faso 2,664
- Suriname 2,663
- Honduras 2,627
- Malawi 2,626
- Nicaragua 2,616
- Nigeria 2,615
- Namibia 2,603
- Sudan 2,570
- India 2,569
- Nigeria 2,560
- Antigua and Barbuda 2,557
- Djibouti 2,541
- Eswatini 2,536
- Gabon 2,535
- Bangladesh 2,533
- Comoros 2,506
- Ecuador 2,497
- Cape Verde 2,493
- Togo 2,463l
- Bahamas 2,446
- Bolivia 2,430
- Sao Tome and Principe 2,424
- Syria 2,418
- Pakistan 2,401
- Botswana 2,397
- Maldives 2,370
- Gambia 2,368
- Ethiopia 2,361
- Angola 2,350
- Solomon Islands 2,341
- Tanzania 2,318
- Jordan 2,308l
- Granada 2,307
- East Timor 2,296
- Venezuela 2,282
- Uganda 2,278
- Zambia 2,276
- Kenya 2,268
- Sierra Leone 2,262
- South Sudan 2,253
- Afghanistan 2,237
- Chad 2,217
- Rwanda 2,190
- Guinea Bissau 2,188
- Iraq 2,179
- Congo 2,148
- Haiti 2,110
- Liberia 2,098
- Papua New Guinea 2,085
- North Korea 2,070
- Mozambique 2,053
- Democratic Republic of the Congo 1,996
- Yemen 1,958
- Lesotho 1,922
- Zimbabwe 1,853
- Madagascar 1,771
- Burundi 1,697
- Central African Republic 1,642
Source: WorldInData via the United Nations