Study finds Nordic diet low on healthy foods

A study conducted by the Finnish National Public Health Institute, KTL, in Finland reveals that nine out of ten people in the Nordic and Baltic countries could benefit from increasing the amount of fruit and vegetables in their diet.

The Norbagreen 2002 Study examined the consumption frequency of vegetables, fruit and berries, bread and fish in eight Nordic and Baltic countries. These foods are recommended to be monitored internationally as dietary indicators for health by leading authorities such as the World Health Organization.

The study revealed that the consumption frequency of these foods was about twice as much in the high consuming countries (Sweden, Finland and Norway) compared to the low consuming countries. It also revealed that about 90 per cent of the population should increase their fruit and vegetable consumption, more than 40 per cent their fish consumption and more than 50 per cent their bread consumption in these countries to reach the recommended consumption frequencies.

The lack of comparable food consumption data is an internationally known problem, which is why one of the main objections of the study was to unearth eating patterns in the region, ultimately to discover the 'healthiness' of diets.

The Norbagreen research, which was mostly sponsored by the Nordic Council of Ministers, compared food consumption frequencies of 8397 individuals, 15-74 years of age (about 1000 completed interviews/country). The study was carried out in eight Nordic and Baltic countries and is thought to be the first research of its kind in Northern Europe.

The food frequency questionnaire was validated in Finland, Lithuania, and had been validated earlier partly in Sweden.