Turks consume 3,762 calories per day: Research

ISTANBUL

With an average daily calorie intake of 3,762, Türkiye came in fifth place out of 184 countries on the ranking created by Oxford University.

Researchers from Oxford have recently ranked 184 countries in terms of their citizens’ average daily calorie consumption, where Bahrain ranked first, followed by the U.S., Ireland, Belgium and Türkiye.

Bahrain, where people consume an average of 4,012 calories a day, managed to outstrip the U.S., which is known for its obesity problem. The data showed that four out of 10 adults in Bahrain are obese, which is linked to a sedentary lifestyle and increased consumption of fast food.

According to the research, people in the U.S. consume an average of 3,868 calories a day. Ireland was third on the list with 3,850 calories a day, Belgium was fourth with 3,824 calories and Türkiye came fifth with 3,762 calories.

On the contrary, the countries with the lowest calorie consumption were the Central African Republic with 1,641 calories, Burundi with 1,696 calories, Madagascar with 1,770 calories, Zimbabwe with 1,853 calories and Yemen with 1,957 calories, as these countries are facing protracted political strife that affected their economies and national food supplies.

According to the results, people in 173 out of all 184 countries consume more than the recommended average of 2,000 calories per day for both sexes.

With the increasing availability of ready meals and processed foods, calorie consumption has been increasing worldwide for years. But even though food items become more calorie-dense, researchers warn that people are becoming more nutrient deficient, estimating that the number of diabetics in the world will rise to 1.3 billion by 2050.