It seems the older you are, the better you’re eating.
That’s the verdict according to the CSIRO Healthy Diet Score for 2016, a survey of more than 86,000 Australians designed to take a snapshot of our diet habits as a nation.
It found Aussies aged 71 and over had an average diet score of 63/100, compared to 61 for 51-70 year olds and 57 for 31-50 year olds.
And while women scored better than men by four points (it seems we eat more vegies - nice work, ladies!), it wasn’t all good news.
As a nation, our diet is pretty average. Our biggest downfall? Tucking into discretionary (aka junk) foods far too often. Only 1% of respondents abstained from eating them, while the average Aussie ate about three serves a day. Yikes!
Retired individuals and health industry workers had the highest average score when the results were broken down by occupation, while the unemployed and construction workers had the lowest.
What we need to do to improve our national diet? You know the answer: cut back on the treats and seriously up our fruit and vegie intake.
Not only will these eating tweaks help keep you at a healthy weight, but it will also reduce the risk of developing chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
Need some ideas on how to overhaul your recipe repertoire? Start here.
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