Pea-brained! How we get it so wrong on calorie counts
IT’S considered vital knowledge when it comes to losing weight in a diet.
But most Britons hugely underestimate how many calories there are in their food, a study has found.
The average person believes a large portion of fish and chips contains just 388 calories when in reality it is closer to 1,000 – before adding tartare sauce or ketchup.
Britons estimate a portion of chicken tikka masala has 820 calories, but it actually contains 1,067 – over half the 2,000 recommended daily amount for women.
They also assume a jacket potato with beans has 274 when it really has 433 and think there are 187 calories in a standard bar of milk chocolate when the correct figure is 236. Britons believe tucking into a slice of deep pan pepperoni pizza means we will consume 210 calories when in fact it is 505.
We also think a 250ml glass of dry white wine has 115 calories compared the actual 184.
Even healthier foods are underestimated with Britons believing a large avocado has 149 calories (it’s really 322) and a Caesar salad has 298 (508). Calories are a measure of how much energy food or drink contains and the UK’s recommended daily intake for men is 2,500. The survey of 1,500 people was carried out by nutrition and food tracking app MyFitnessPal.
Despite the general tendency to underestimate, 32 per cent of Britons try to count calories on a daily basis, but seven in ten estimate rather than check labels. Nutrition expert Amanda Hamilton said: ‘There are so many calorific foods on offer and very few people actually know how many calories are in them. Sadly, many of these calorie- confusing foods are also low on the nutrient scale so it’s a double whammy.’
The study found that the average Briton has tried at least seven diets – with women trying nine – wanting to lose around 1 stone and 4 lbs.
The findings come after the UK was named as the fourth most obese country in Europe by the World Health Organisation. A total of 63 per cent of UK adults are either overweight or obese.
Soaring obesity levels among children have led to a huge rise in the number being treated for type 2 diabetes, new figures reveal.
Diabetes UK described the 57 per cent increase over five years as ‘concerning’ and accused the Government of ‘letting our children down’ by abandoning curbs on junk food deals and adverts. Specialist units in England and Wales treated 621 children with type 2 diabetes in 2015-16 but 973 in 2020-21.
The Department of Health said: ‘We are taking urgent action to halve childhood obesity by 2030.’