Four out of every ten Spanish millennials are overweight and obese in Spain. This is indicated by a survey carried out by the Spanish Society of Dietetics and Food Sciences (SEDCA). It collects the opinions, habits and anthropometric measurements of a thousand people of this age range throughout Spanish territory.
The study captures the modification of healthy habits of yesteryear and "the consequences are reflected in Spanish millennials," indicates the SEDCA. "The Mediterranean Diet has for years been the perfect example of a healthy consumption pattern framed by moderation, frugality, socialization during main meals and physical activity. However, modern life, its diversity of activities and the way in that it forces us to go faster every day, they have gradually modified these habits.
41% of Spaniards born between 1981 and 1998 are overweight and obese and 30% are "clearly" sedentary because they frequently carried out little or no physical activity. In Catalonia, the figure decreases slightly in overweight and obesity (37%) and increases six points (36%) in sedentary lifestyle. Although the survey indicates that millennials like homemade food, it has also highlighted that 67.5% of them prefer to cook simple and quick dishes such as rice and pasta.
This could indicate that millennials lack information and education regarding what to cook and how to do it to lead a healthier life. The data provided by the study indicates that 33.3% of millennials eat fresh fruit daily and 70.5% of them consume lean meats between 1-4 times a week. Their hobbies are mainly social, such as going out with friends for lunch or dinner in bars or restaurants (67.8%).
As for preferred drinks, water (85.7%) and beer (46.5%) and soft drinks (42.2%) top the list. It should be noted that beer is a fermented drink that, due to its composition and consumption pattern, can be part of the Mediterranean Diet.
In this sense, the professor of nutrition at the Faculty of Medicine of the Complutense University of Madrid, Jesús Román Martínez, explains that this is true as long as the intake is done responsibly and accompanied by food, following the lifestyle pattern. Mediterranean and remembering the maximum intake amounts for both healthy women (200-300 ml/day) and adult men (400-600 ml/day).
After analyzing the results, an illustrated guide to healthy eating for millennials has been prepared with the intention of providing information about healthy living and the Mediterranean diet, taking into account the particularities of modern life.
Román Martínez, author of said guide, highlights that "there is a combination of factors that lead to obesity. It is not just a single factor. Sedentary lifestyle, the frequency of consumption of certain types of foods, the quantities, obviously, the way to prepare them and the knowledge we have about how to cook them.
