Health

Study Shows Austria Out-Eats America, Yet Americans are Still Overweight

Study Shows Austria Out-Eats America, Yet Americans are Still Overweight
Bernadine Racoma

A study has been conducted recently to determine which country has the most calorie intake in a day and it turns out that Austria is now out-eating America, but more Americans are still overweight compared to Austrians.

The study revealed that Lithuania, Greece and Austria top the list of countries that are not showing any moderation in eating, drinking and smoking. Yet somehow, overeating does not necessarily result in getting overweight.

OECD data

Earlier in the week, Recovery Brands, an addiction treatment provider, released several analyses and charts showing consumption trends between the years 2004 and 2014 based on the data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The report monitors upward trends in calorie intake around the world and showed that calorie consumption produced distinct impacts. Based on the latest OECD statistics, the United States remains on top of the chart, with an average daily individual intake of 3,639 calories. But in the latest report Austria has come out on top, with an average daily calorie consumption of 3,784 and a 10-year average of 3,796 calories. However, despite this higher calorie consumption, the effect is different. About one-third of Americans are considered obese but in Austria, about 23 percent of men and only 18.5 percent of women could be counted as overweight. This data came from the World Obesity Federation of Britain.

Ongoing trend

The trend extends to other countries in Europe as well. In the report, Belgium serves the same amount of calories as the U.S. but the country’s obesity rate is just 10 percent. Chile and Mexico on the other hand consume fewer calories but their obesity rates are higher. The report states that in all regions included in the study, people, except those living in former countries of the Soviet Union, are eating more. This correlates to an increase in type 2 diabetes and heart disease, both of which are related to unhealthy eating.

Negative health issues related to smoking and drinking are also higher. Lithuania is on top of the list for per capita alcohol consumption. According to the World Health Organization, alcohol abuse can decrease a person’s lifespan by five years. On the other hand, Greece tops the list in tobacco consumption. Also on the top ranks are North Korea, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Armenia.

The report is not exhaustive since data for Africa and many parts of Asia were missing. Still, it presents a very important picture in the consumption of countries with higher incomes.

Generally speaking, the report showed that smoking and drinking around the world have gone down, with only Eastern Europe showing a rising trend in the consumption of tobacco following the trend from the 1960s until today. North America, used to consume an average of 4,400 grams of tobacco per person per year. Now the chart has considerably gone down by about 33 percent.

Image credit: By FatTeen97 (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

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