British men take in far more calories than they realise, study shows
The average man in the UK heavily underestimates the number of calories he takes in each day, new research shows.
A study of 2,000 men suggested it's not unusual for them to put away double the number of calories they think they are eating.
Most of those questioned underestimated the calories in a korma with naan and rice by 400, while they thought there were 787 calories in a pepperoni pizza – fewer than half the 1,712 it actually contains.
Similarly, they thought there were 350 in a 225g bag of sharing crisps, when there are actually around 1,200, while they underestimated calories in an average portion of chips by more than 300.
But it's not just the nutritional content of food they were confused by – one in six thought they should be eating between 3,000 and 5,000 calories each day, when the daily recommendation is in fact 2,500 for men.
Kate Toland, one of the researchers in the study by Fitness First, said:
It’s good that men are taking a relaxed approach to food – we would never encourage obsessive calorie counting. However, it’s the difference between being fanatical and understanding that a curry and a few pints will take you way over the recommended daily allowance.