More fish and vegetables and less sugar-sweetened soft drinks are some of the new trends that contribute positively to the Danish diet.
These are some of the findings of the latest Danish national diet survey conducted by the National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark.
The latest Danish national survey of diet and physical activity shows that Danes are closer to meeting some of the official dietary recommendations.
Nearly 4,000 people have participated in the national survey from 2011-2013.
More fish, vegetables
Most Danes eat vegetables every day and the proportion of the diet that vegetables account for has increased almost 20% since the last diet survey from 2003-2008.
People have particularly increased their consumption of low-fiber vegetables such as cucumber and lettuce.
The proportion of fruit in the adult diet has dropped approximately 16% in the same period.
”If you consider the recommendation to eat 600 grams of fruit and vegetables every day it would be beneficial if both children and adults added one more piece of fruit and an extra high-fiber vegetable to their diet,” senior advisor Sisse Fagt from the National Food Institute says.
Average consumption of fish has also increased, particularly in the adult diet which contains approximately 14 g more fish per day. However, daily intake of fish is still skewed: Approximately one third of participants have a diet that contains only small amounts of fish.
One of out every 10 participants does not eat fish at all.
In contrast, about a quarter of the participants eat more than the recommended 50 g of fish a day.
”Fish is a particularly good source of vitamin D and other vital nutrients, so it would be good for Danes to eat more meals containing fish,” senior advisor Agnes N. Pedersen from the National Food Institute explains.
Fewer empty calories
The proportion of total energy intake by children and adults which added sugar accounts for has decreased slightly.
This is primarily because people drink fewer sugar-sweetened soft drinks and eat less sugary food products.
However, half of the 4-14-year-olds and one in three adults still eat too much sugar.
“Sweet treats are empty calories because they–unlike other food groups–only contribute very modestly to the intake of vitamins and minerals, so it is encouraging to see a decrease in how many sweets and soft drinks Danes are having,” Fagt says.
“It is actually quite simple: By following the well-documented, official dietary guidelines it is possible to achieve a healthy diet.”
