Over 1 in 3 adults want to eat healthier
Apart from those who said they would like to eat a healthier diet, 58 percent of adults said they didn’t need to because they already ate healthily. Five percent are not bothered by what they eat and 1 percent do not think a healthy diet is important.
Lower risk of health problems or disease
Most people want to eat more healthily to lower the risk of health problems or illness. Over half of them give this as their motive. Twenty-eight percent of adults also say feeling physically fitter is a reason for a healthier diet. Ten percent said losing weight, looking better, or not gaining weight were motives for healthier eating.
| Reden | 2022 (% over-18s who want to eat more healthily) |
|---|---|
| Reduce risk of health problems or illness | 53.6 |
| Feeling physically fitter | 28.4 |
| Losing weight, looking better, not gaining weight | 9.5 |
| Reduce or cure health problems or diseases | 3.9 |
| Feeling mentally better | 2.9 |
| Other reason | 0.8 |
| ¹⁾Multiple answers possible. | |
It’s hard to say no if others don’t say no to unhealthy food
People who want to eat more healthily mostly have problems saying no to unhealthy foods if they are with others who do eat them. Over half of people asked about this find this difficult. Forty-six percent said they struggle not to eat unhealthy products in stressful situations, and 43 percent said it is difficult when there is unhealthy food in the home. Both being in a hurry and being at home alone are mentioned by one third.
| Situatie | (Very) easy (% over-18s who want to eat more healthily) | Not easy, not difficult (% over-18s who want to eat more healthily) | (Very) difficult (% over-18s who want to eat more healthily) |
|---|---|---|---|
| When with others who eat unhealthy foods | 20.4 | 28.9 | 50.8 |
| In stressful situations | 26.2 | 28.0 | 45.8 |
| When it is in the home | 27.4 | 29.3 | 43.3 |
| when in a hurry | 32.6 | 29.8 | 37.6 |
| When at home alone | 33.6 | 30.1 | 36.3 |
More than half of the obese people, 54 percent, say they want to eat a healthier diet. They find it especially difficult to say no to unhealthy food in times of stress. When they are at home on their own, too, obese people struggle to stop themselves from eating unhealthy foods.
This news release is based on the publication The Netherlands in numbers 2023, in which answers are given to 34 questions about the country by means of images and text.
Sources
- The Netherlands in numbers - The Netherlands in numbers 2023
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