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 reveals why.
The average American scoffs 3,868 calories every day - the second-highest number of any country in the world.
The States was trumped only by Bahrain, where people eat 4,012 calories daily.
The figures are based on findings by Oxford University scientists at OurWorldInData, which used statistics from the United Nations.
Ireland scored bronze with 3,850, and Belgium (3,824) and Turkey (3,762) rounded out the top five.
The UK ranked 26th overall, with the average Brit munching their way through 3,422 calories every 24 hours.
This came in contrast to the Central African Republic, where residents consume only 1,642 on average per day.
Burundi (1,697), Madagascar (1,771), Zimbabwe (1,853) and Lesotho (1,922) completed the bottom five.
The NHS recommends women consume no more than 2,000 calories a day and men should stick to around 2,500.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues similar guidance, with advice recommending a 2,000 daily cap for all.
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More than 94 per cent of the countries included in the study surpassed this limit.
The average worked out to be 2,947 - about what they chow down on in Indonesia, Mongolia and the Seychelles.
The data, from the Food and Agriculture Organization, was based on the average total food bought per household so did not account for wastage.
But experts warn any excessive calorie consumption puts people at risk of obesity - and a host of related health complications.
Mostly commonly, this includes type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, some types of cancer, 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 do enough physical activity.
";Managing it can be hard. Losing weight takes time and commitment.
"It's important to remember that losing what seems like a small amount of weight, such as three per cent or more of your original body weight, and maintaining this for life, can significantly reduce your risk of developing obesity-related complications like diabetes and heart disease."
How many calories people eat per day around the world
- Bahrain 4,012
- United States 3,868
- Ireland 3,851
- Belgium 3,824
- Turkey 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
- Czechia 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
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3,056
- Vietnam 3,026
- Costa Rica 3,015
- Mauritania 3,013
- Cyprus 3,012
- Slovakia 3,006
- Macao 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
- Cote d'Ivoire 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
- Saint 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
- Niger 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
- Grenada 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 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