Most Eat Sweets on an Average Day

On an average day, 70 percent of children and 61 percent of adults eat sweets, according to the USDA's Food Surveys Research Group. Notice the word "eat." These lofty percentages include only the consumption of sweet food—items such as nutrition bars, cakes, pies, cookies, doughnuts, candy, ice cream, and other solid foods with added sugar. Fruit is not included, nor are sweetened drinks. 

The types of sweets children and adults consume on an average day is surprisingly similar. Sweet bakery products comprise the largest share for both age groups (45 percent). Candy accounts for another 30 percent of the sweets consumed by children and 31 percent of the sweets consumed by adults.

On an average day, younger children are more likely than older children to eat sweets. Among adults, those aged 60-plus are more likely to eat sweets than young or middle-aged adults. 

Percent who ate sweets on an average day, 2015–18

Aged 2 to 5: 74%

Aged 6 to 11: 78%

Aged 12 to 19: 62%

Aged 20 to 39: 55%

Aged 40 to 59: 60%

Aged 60-plus: 70%

Daily calorie intake is 300 to 400 calories greater for those who eat sweets versus those who do not. Sweets account for 18 to 19 percent of the total daily calorie intake among children and for 19 percent of daily calories among adults aged 60 or older.  

Source: USDA Food Surveys Research Group, What We Eat in America, NHANES 2015–2018, Sweet Foods Consumption by Children in the U.S. and Sweet Foods Consumption by Adults in the U.S.

36% of Kids Eat Fast Food on an Average Day

Fast food is a big part of the daily diet of American children. On an average day in 2015–18, more than one-third of children aged 2 to 19 (36 percent) ate fast food, according to the National Center for Health Statistics' National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The survey is an in-person interview asking a nationally representative sample of respondents (or, in the case of children, their parents) to recall their food intake over the past 24 hours. The survey defines fast food as food sourced from a fast-food or pizza restaurant.

Overall, fast food accounted for 14 percent of children's daily calorie intake in 2015–18. It accounts for a greater percentage of daily calories among teens aged 12 to 19 (17 percent) than among children aged 2 to 11 (11 percent). By race and Hispanic origin, fast food accounts for 21.5 percent of daily calorie intake for Blacks teens, the most of any demographic segment. Among Hispanic teens, the figure is 18.5 percent, and among non-Hispanic whites 14.8 percent.

Fast food consumption of children aged 2 to 19, average day 2015–18
64% consumed no fast food
11% consumed less than 25 percent of calories from fast food
14% consumed 25 to 45 percent of calories from fast food
11% consumed over 45 percent of calories from fast food

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Fast Food Intake among Children and Adolescents in the United States, 2015–2018

Take-Out from Restaurants Is Essential

During a week's time, Americans eat out an average of five times a week, according to a pre-coronavirus study by the USDA's Economic Research Service. These "food-away-from-home" acquisitions, as the ERS calls them, include everything from meals at restaurants, to milk shakes from ice cream shops, tacos from food trucks, pizza deliveries, and school lunches. This means nearly one-fourth of our 21 meals a week are acquired from restaurants or other places away from home.

The coronavirus is putting a serious dent in those dining habits. No longer can we dine in a restaurant, so take-out has become the only option. Fortunately, states that have ordered non-essential businesses to close have also deemed take-out to be essential. For most of us, it is.

Weekly frequency of food-away-from-home acquisitions by age
Total adults: 4.72
Under age 25:  5.01
Aged 25 to 34: 5.31
Aged 35 to 44: 5.45
Aged 45 to 54: 5.05
Aged 55 to 64: 4.96
Aged 65 to 74: 4.28
Aged 75-plus:  3.44

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service, America's Eating Habits: Food Away from Home

Fun Facts about Food

The folks who work for the USDA's Economic Research Service must have a lot of fun analyzing how food fits into the daily routine of the average American. It boggles the mind how much information ERS researchers Tobenna D. Anekwe and Eliana Zeballos have extracted from the American Time Use survey to reveal our relationship with food—not just eating and drinking, but also traveling to the store, shopping, food preparation and cleanup. These details are presented in their study, Food-Related Time Use: Changes and Demographic Differences.

Let's start with why it matters.  Food-related activities, say the researchers, rank fourth among the most common activities in which Americans participate on an average day—behind only sleep, paid work, and watching television. Here are a few of the fun facts about food the researchers detail in their study, which also explores demographic differences in food-related activities and trends over the past decade...

• 95%: Percentage who participate in primary eating and drinking on an average day (meaning their main activity at the time).
• 64.0 minutes: Average minutes per day the average person spends eating and drinking as a primary activity. 
• 53%: Percentage who participate in secondary eating and drinking on an average day (meaning they are primarily doing something else—such as watching television or working).
• 16.8 minutes: Average minutes per day the average person spends eating and drinking as a secondary activity .
• 6 hours 23.4 minutes: Time Americans spend between primary eating and drinking occasions.
• 1.99: Number of primary eating and drinking occasions Americans engage in on an average day.
• 53%: Percentage who participate in food preparation on an average day.
• 51.1 minutes: Time spent preparing food by those who engage in food preparation.
• 23%: Percentage who participate in food cleanup on an average day.
• 34.1 minutes: Time spent in cleanup by those who engage in food cleanup.
• 14%: Percentage who shop for groceries on an average day.
• 24.4 minutes: Time those who shop for groceries spend getting to the store. 
• 46.0 minutes: Time those who shop for groceries spend in the store. 
• 6:00 to 6:59 pm: Time of day when the most people (32%) are engaged in primary eating and drinking on an average day. Second is 12:00 to 12:59 pm, at 30%. Third is 7:00 to 7:59 am, at 15%.

Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Food-Related Time Use: Changes and Demographic Differences

Snacking in the Evening

Most Americans are late evening snackers, according to the USDA Food Surveys Research Group, which defines late evening as 8 pm to midnight. On an average day, 64 percent of people aged 20 or older "consumed one or more foods or beverages other than plain water in the late evening." So what, you say? The USDA is interested in this behavior because of its "potential negative implications for health."

The prevalence of late evening snacking is greatest among young adults. Fully 68 percent of people aged 20 to 39 consume something more than just plain water between 8 and 11:59 pm on an average day. Among 40-to-59-year-olds, 65 percent snack in the late evening. Among people aged 60 or older, the figure is 59 percent.

Now for the potential negative implications: Late evening snacking is not calorie free. On average, the food and drinks consumed in the late evening add up to 16 percent of the daily calories of snackers. Perhaps consequently, late evening snackers consume more calories on an average day than those who do not snack in the evening—2,243 calories per day for snackers and 1,906 calories for nonsnackers.

The snackers are veritable vacuum cleaners in the kitchen. The foods and beverages being consumed by late night snackers include sweet bakery products (17 percent of late night snackers), candy (10 percent), sandwiches (9 percent), poultry (5 percent), white potatoes (6 percent), fruit (11 percent) cheese and yogurt (5 percent), regular soft drinks (9 percent), diet soft drinks (4 percent), tea (8 percent), milk (6 percent), coffee (4 percent), and alcoholic beverages (14 percent). Among those who report drinking alcohol between 8 and midnight, nearly half of the alcohol they drink all day is consumed during those hours.

Source: USDA, Food Surveys Research Group, Late Evening Food and Beverage Consumption by Adults in the U.S.

U.S. Is Biggest Net Importer of Cuisines

American culture may dominate movies and music around the world, but it does not dominate restaurant cuisines, according to a National Bureau of Economic Research study.

University of Minnesota economist Joe Waldfogel uses TripAdvisor data on 148 restaurant cuisines and Euromonitor data on restaurant expenditures in at least the top 60 cities of 52 countries. After analyzing this voluminous data, Waldfogel's principal finding is that the U.S. is the world's largest net importer of cuisines, with a deficit of $130 billion in 2017, excluding fast food. When fast food is included, the deficit falls to $55 billion, but the U.S. remains the biggest net importer of cuisines. Italy and Japan are the largest net exporters of their cuisines, followed by Mexico, Turkey, Thailand, and France.

Source: National Bureau of Economic Research, Dining Out as Cultural Trade, NBER Working Paper 26020 ($5)

Low-Fat Diets Aren't Working

If eating high-fat food was the cause of obesity, then Americans would be losing weight. The fat content of the American diet has fallen substantially over the past 35 years, reports the USDA's Economic Research Service. Fat accounted for only 32 percent of the calories consumed by the average person in 2011–14, down from 41 percent in 1977–78. The 32 percent figure is within the level of dietary fat recommended by the National Academy of Sciences.

Americans have significantly reduced the fat in their diet, but they haven't lost weight. Just the opposite, in fact. During the past 35 years, as we opted for lower-fat foods, the percentage of people aged 20 to 74 who are overweight expanded from 47 to 71 percent. Obesity climbed from 15 to 40 percent. If fat is not the culprit, then what is behind the obesity epidemic?

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service, Both at Home and Away, Americans Are Choosing More Lower Fat Foods than They Did 35 Years Ago

37% Eat Fast Food on an Average Day

Fast food is a staple of the American diet. More than one-third (37 percent) of adults aged 20 or older eat fast food on an average day, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The NCHS defines fast food as food sourced from a fast-food restaurant or pizza. Young adults are most likely to eat fast food, older adults least likely...

Percent eating fast food on an average day
Aged 20 to 39: 45%
Aged 40 to 59: 38%
Aged 60-plus: 24%

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Fast Food Consumption among Adults in the United States, 2013–2016

20% Consume Seafood at Least Twice a Week

Seafood is good for you because of the omega-3 fatty acids it contains. That's why the federal government recommends eating at least two servings a week of fish and/or shellfish. Just 20 percent of adults aged 20 or older meet this guideline, consuming seafood at least twice a week. The figure does not vary much by age or sex. There is more variation by race and Hispanic origin...

Percent of people aged 20 or older who consume seafood at least twice a week
Asians: 41.2%
Blacks: 22.6%
Hispanics: 14.5%
Non-Hispanic Whites: 18.7%

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Seafood Consumption in the United States, 2013–2016

Eating While Doing Something Else

If you've ever wondered why Americans are increasingly overweight, the American Time Use Survey may have the answer. Not only do we spend an average of 63.6 minutes a day eating and drinking mindfully (meaning as a primary activity—or our main activity at the time) but we spend another 17 minutes eating and drinking mindlessly (meaning as a secondary activity while we're focusing on something else). How many calories can we consume in 17 minutes? More than enough to tip the scales, apparently.

Five pursuits account for the 57 percent majority of the primary activities in which we engage while eating and drinking as a secondary activity. Number one is watching television. Twenty-three percent of mindless eating and drinking occurs while watching TV. Close behind is working at our main job, which accounts for another 23 percent. Socializing is number three. Food and drink preparation is fourth, which may explain why so many cooks claim not to be hungry when sitting down for dinner. Reading for personal interest is number five.

There are notable differences between men and women in the primary activities that account for most of their secondary eating and drinking. Among men, the top five activities are watching TV, working, socializing, playing games, and relaxing/thinking. For women, the top five are working, watching TV, food and drink preparation, socializing, and grooming.

Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Watching TV and Working Are the Top Activities that Accompany Secondary Eating

5% of Americans Are Vegetarian, 3% Vegan

Five percent of Americans are vegetarians, according to a Gallup survey, and another 3 percent are vegan. Vegetarians are those who do not eat meat, and vegans reject all animal products. By age, both vegetarians and vegans peak in the 30-to-49 age group...

Percent who are vegetarian
Aged 18 to 29: 7%
Aged 30 to 49: 8%
Aged 50 to 64: 3%
Aged 65-plus: 2%

Percent who are vegan
Aged 18 to 29: 3%
Aged 30 to 49: 4%
Aged 50 to 64: 1%
Aged 65-plus: 3%

Source: Gallup, Snapshot: Few Americans Vegetarian or Vegan

Who Eats Salad?

On an average day, 20 percent of Americans aged 1 or older eat salad, according to the USDA's Food Surveys Research Group. The group defines salad as a mixture composed mainly of raw vegetables and excludes such things as fruit, pasta, potato, chicken, and tuna salad. The data come from the 2011–14 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which asks respondents to recall their food consumption for the previous 24 hours.

Females (23 percent) are more likely than males (16 percent) to eat salad on an average day, and older people are more likely than younger. Among adults aged 20 to 39, 18 percent eat salad on an average day. Among adults aged 40 or older, a larger 26 percent do. Those most likely to eat salad on an average day are women aged 60 or older (31 percent). Salad consumption also rises with income. Only 13 percent of people aged 1 or older from households with the lowest incomes eat salad on an average day versus 26 percent of those from households with the highest incomes.

Salads can contain a variety of ingredients, and most of the salads reported by survey respondents contained at least two raw vegetables. Here are the percentages of salads consumed on an average day that contained the following ingredients: 86% lettuce or leafy greens; 86% salad dressing; 43% tomatoes; 34% carrots; 27% onions; 25% cheese; 20% cucumbers; 19% meat, poultry, or fish; 10% croutons; 9% sweet peppers; 8% nuts or seeds; 7% olives; 7% celery; 5% avocado; 5% egg; and 5% broccoli.

Source: USDA, Food Surveys Research Group, Salad Consumption in the U.S.

Who Spends the Most Time Eating?

It's not who you think it is. Healthy weight adults (with a BMI of 18.5 to 24.99), spent the most time eating on an average day in 2016, according to an analysis of American Time Use Survey data by the USDA's Economic Research Service. Overweight adults (with a BMI of 25.0 to 29.99) spent less time eating than those with a healthy weight. The low-risk obese (with a BMI of 30.0 to 34.99) spent even less time eating, and the high-risk obese (with a BMI of 35.0 or higher) spent the least time of all.

Minutes per day spent eating by body mass index
Healthy weight: 88
Overweight: 80
Low-risk obese: 79
High-risk obese: 73

The findings are "consistent with patterns from studies in other countries," report the ERS researchers. The higher the BMI, the less time spent eating.

Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Healthy Weight Adults Spend More Time Eating than Do Overweight and Obese Adults

Thanksgiving Meal Is More Work than Play

Thanksgiving is unique in more ways than turkey. It is the only holiday on which Americans spend less time enjoying their meal than they do preparing the meal and cleaning up afterwards.

Time use on Thanksgiving
Minutes spent eating and drinking: 88
Minutes spent on meal preparation and cleanup: 127

Thanksgiving stands apart from holidays in general, when the average person spends just 46 minutes preparing and cleaning up meals and a larger 73 minutes enjoying their efforts.

Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Thanksgiving Is a Day for Food, and Black Friday Is a Day for Nonfood Shopping

Teens Are Drinking Less Soda

Americans are spending less on soda than they once did. In 2016, the average household spent $136 on carbonated beverages purchased at grocery stores, down from $152 in 2007, after adjusting for inflation. Households are spending less because people are drinking less, especially those known to drink the most—teenagers.

Fewer teens are drinking soda daily, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. The YRBSS is the CDC's annual survey of students in 9th through 12th grade in states and metropolitan areas across the country, collecting information on teen health behaviors including smoking, drinking, sexual activity, weight, and diet. In 2015, just 20 percent of 9th through 12th graders drank at least one regular soda every day in the past seven days, down from 34 percent in 2007. Daily soda consumption ranges from a low of 12 percent among teens in Connecticut to a high of 32 percent among teens in Kentucky. Although the Kentucky figure is the highest among states in 2015, it's lower than it once was. In 2007, more than 40 percent of Kentucky teens drank a soda every day.

Source: CDC, Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System

When Do Americans Eat?

Nearly everyone (95 percent) engages in primary eating and drinking at least once a day, reports the USDA's Economic Research Service. Analyzing data from the American Time Use Survey, ERS researchers examined when Americans eat and whether eating is a primary or secondary activity. Primary eating occurs when eating is the main activity at the time. Secondary eating occurs when another activity—such as watching TV—is the main activity.

On an average day, 77 percent of Americans aged 15 or older engage in primary eating and drinking at dinnertime—between 5:00 pm and 7:59 pm. A smaller 62 percent report primary eating and drinking during lunchtime—between 11:00 am and 1:59 pm. Only 40 percent report eating as a primary activity during the breakfast hours of 7:00 am to 9:59 am.

More than half the public (54 percent) eats as a secondary activity during an average day. Watching television, working, and socializing are the most frequently cited primary activities engaged in while eating.

Source: USDA Economic Research Service, What Time of Day Do Americans Engage in Primary and Secondary Eating?

Dinner at Restaurants by Age

Most of us eat dinner at a restaurant at least once a week, according to a Gallup survey. When Americans are asked how many nights in the past week they had eaten dinner at a restaurant of any kind, the 61 percent majority said they had done so at least once, a percentage that has been stable for nearly a decade. Not surprisingly, age is an important factor in the frequency of dining out...

Percent who ate dinner at a restaurant in past week
Aged 18-to-34: 72%
Aged 35 to 54: 65%
Aged 50-plus: 50%

The stability in eating out is good news for restaurants, says Gallup, especially as fresh meal delivery services and food bars at grocery stores become increasingly popular. The fact that young adults are the most frequent customers is also good news, Gallup concludes.

Source: Gallup, Americans' Dining-Out Frequency Little Changed from 2008

How Many Americans Are Foodies?

A Pew Research Center survey of the public's attitudes toward food may have revealed how many Americans are foodies. According to Wikipedia, "a foodie is a person who seeks new food experiences as a hobby rather than simply eating out of convenience or hunger."

Pew revealed the size of the foodie population by asking respondents how well a series of four statements described their eating habits. The statements are...

• I focus on the taste sensations of every meal.
• My main focus is on eating healthy and nutritious.
• I usually eat whatever is easy and most convenient.
• I eat when necessary but don't care very much about what I eat. 

Twenty-three percent of Americans say the statement "I focus on the taste sensations of every meal" describes them "very well." Those are the foodies.

Source: Pew Research Center, New Food Fights: U.S. Public Divides Over Food Science

Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Is...Declining?

That's right. Fruit and vegetable consumption fell by 27 pounds per capita during the past decade—from 299 pounds per person in 2003 to 272 pounds per person in 2013, according to the USDA's Economic Research Service. But only three items account for most of the decline: orange juice, potatoes, and head lettuce.

So who isn't eating their vegetables? Most Americans have cut back, according to USDA researchers. Children (aged 2 to 19) and men (aged 20 or older) ate fewer vegetables in 2007-08 (the latest data available by demographic characteristic) than in 1994-98. Women, in contrast, are eating more vegetables—except for potatoes and tomatoes. Vegetable consumption (except potatoes) has also increased among the college educated.

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service, A Closer Look at Declining Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Using Linked Data Sources

41% of Full-Service Restaurants Are Ethnic

What is the single most popular type of restaurant in the United States? Fast-food restaurants serving hamburgers, of course. There are 53,000 of them, according to the 2012 economic census. They account for 23.6 percent of the nation's 225,000 fast-food restaurants with employees. After hamburgers are sandwich/sub shops (18.5%), pizza (15.8%), Chinese (10.0%), and Mexican (8.8%).

What's the most popular type of full-service restaurant in the United States? The answer is "other ethnic"—a category that includes Thai, Indian, Cambodian, Japanese, Ethiopian, and all other ethnic restaurants except Mexican, Italian, and Chinese. There are 31,000 "other ethnic" restaurants, accounting for 13.5 percent of the nation's 232,000 full-service restaurants with employees. Second in popularity is Mexican (9.4%) followed by Italian (9.2%) and Chinese (8.6%). The four ethnic categories account for a substantial 41 percent of the nation's full-service restaurants.

Source: Census Bureau, 2012 Economic Census