Adult Ukrainians consume almost half the amount of vegetables (174 grams versus the recommended 300 grams per day) and less than 30% of fruits and berries (83 grams versus 300 grams per day) compared with the recommendations for healthy eating for adults.
The relevant data are contained in the national study of the current nutritional structure of Ukrainians, which was conducted by the Ipsos international research company at the initiative of Danone in Ukraine.
The results of the study of food consumption in 2018-2019 showed that adults consume an excessive amount of flour products – 474 grams per day, at the same time, the level of consumption of dairy products is several times lower than recommended, as well as liquid (500 ml per day). Ukrainians consume extremely few legumes – 9 grams against the recommended 75 grams and only a quarter of the recommended amount of nuts and seeds – 8 grams against 30 grams.
According to the study, Ukrainians consume twice the recommended amount of salt – 9.7 grams compared to the recommended 5 grams of the World Health Organization (WHO). Men consume 17% more salt than women – 10.7 grams versus 8.9 grams.
The average adult sugar intake is 46 grams per day. Only about a quarter of the adult population adheres to recommendations for optimal sugar intake – less than 25 grams per day (25% of men and 23% of women). Some 40% of Ukrainians consume from 25 grams to 50 grams of sugar per day. A high level of sugar consumption – more than 50 grams per day is found for more than a third of the population (35%), of which 12% consume more than 75 grams of sugar per day.
The study involved 1,232 people aged 1 to 60 years. The examination of the study was provided by the Association of Dietitians of Ukraine.
