Over 50% of Russians do not eat fast food — survey

Society & Culture November 16, 2023, 13:09

More than 60% of respondents said they knew what a healthy diet looked like (food choices, number of calories, eating schedule), with more than 51% following one, and 40% not adhering to healthy eating habits

MOSCOW, November 16. /TASS/. The majority of Russians do not eat fast food as part of their diet, while 48.7% of Russians still frequent restaurants where this kind of fare is served, the results of a survey conducted by the Research Center for Socio-Political Monitoring of the Institute of Social Sciences of RANEPA university (available at the disposal of TASS) showed.

The sociological survey was conducted in 29 regions across the country, 1,516 people aged 18 years and older participated in it. Survey participants were interviewed in their homes.

"The study showed that more than 50% of people do not consume fast food, while 48.7% eat fast food from time to time. What is more, these numbers have not changed over the past two years. This statistic could be due to people wanting to save money during crisis periods, or to the wholesale changes the fast food market has undergone over the past year," the study says.

More than 60% of respondents said they knew what a healthy diet looked like (food choices, number of calories, eating schedule), with more than 51% following one, and 40% not adhering to healthy eating habits.

"In recent years, more and more people are saying that they don’t eat healthy. A general lack of good eating habits was cited as the most common reason - 37.6% said this was the case, and many said they just didn’t have enough time - 29.9%, including 28.3% who cited busy work or school schedules as getting in the way. When picking out food, almost 60% of respondents believe taste is the most important thing, more than half - the cost, 44% pay attention to the quality of the food, and less than 40% are concerned with benefits to their health. The cost of food makes a difference for people, but it’s not the most important thing," the results of the study showed.

Women pay more attention to proper nutrition, as well as those who are more educated, people who work in mentally taxing professions, and citizens who earn a lot of money. The survey also showed that people who work full-time tended to have a more unhealthy diet.

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