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American adults eat an extra meal each day — in junk food, new study finds

By
Social Links for Katherine Donlevy
Published Dec. 17, 2023, 2:34 a.m. ET
A new study shows that Americans are stacking up a meal's worth of calories daily just by snacking on junk food.
A new study shows that Americans are stacking up a meal's worth of calories daily just by snacking on junk food. Shutterstock

Got junk?

American adults average four meals per day — with one entirely made up of junk food.

Researchers from The Ohio State University discovered adults across the nation consume up to 500 calories throughout the day in non-nutritious treats.

The hefty total makes up nearly a quarter of their daily calorie intake and about one-third of daily added sugar.

“The magnitude of the impact isn’t realized until you actually look at it. Snacks are contributing a meal’s worth of intake to what we eat without it actually being a meal,” said senior study author Christopher Taylor, professor of medical dietetics in the university’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.

“You know what dinner is going to be: a protein, a side dish or two. But if you eat a meal of what you eat for snacks, it becomes a completely different scenario of, generally, carbohydrates, sugars, not much protein, not much fruit, not a vegetable.

Adults across the nation were found to be consuming up to 500 calories throughout the day in non-nutritious treats.
Adults across the nation were found to be consuming up to 500 calories throughout the day in non-nutritious treats. Shutterstock

“So it’s not a fully well-rounded meal.” 

The whopping revelation comes just months after a separate study found that remote workers consume an extra 800 calories while tracking 3,500 fewer steps per day on average.

Now, it seems all adults have a snacking problem.

Nearly 24,000 surveyed Americans over the age of 30 are turning to unhealthy treats for between 19.5% and 22.4% of their total energy intake, OSU researchers discovered.

While they overwhelmingly opt for convenience foods high in carbohydrates and fats as well as sweets, adults are also sipping alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks that include sugar-sweetened beverages, protein, milk and dairy.

Snacks are contributing a meal’s worth of intake to what we eat without it actually being a meal,”
The study found that snacks contribute a meal’s worth of calories to what we eat without it actually being a nutritious meal. Shutterstock

Some claim to snack on fruits, grains and vegetables, but those who do make up a very small percentage of the surveyed group.

To correct the enlarged portions Americans have created for ourselves, Taylor suggests picking snacks based on what is lacking from daily nutritional needs.

“We think about what we’re going to pack for lunch and cook for dinner. But we don’t plan that way for our snacks. So then you’re at the mercy of what’s available in your environment,” he said.