Britons are consuming 50 per cent more calories than they think they are, according to new research from the Office for National Statistics.
Men typically consume 1,000 more calories a day than they believe and women eat roughly 800 extra calories more, with estimates becoming less reliable the more people eat, the study showed.
Analysis of the National Diet and Nutrition survey revealed 79 per cent of the 4,500 respondents claimed to be eating less than the requirement for their age and sex.
It found people are eating the equivalent of an extra Big Mac a day, with men consuming 3,119 calories and not the 2,065 they claim. Women consumed 2,393 calories instead of 1,570.
The study followed 200 people using the “gold standard” monitoring technique for calorie intake.
Researchers used the doubly labelled water (DLW) method which requires participants to drink water with isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen inside, allowing for a more precise analysis of energy expenditure over 24 hours.
Overall, the study found self-reported calorie estimates were 32 per cent lower than DLW measures.
It comes as Public Health England (PHE) demands a “calorie-cap” on supermarket ready meals and fast food dishes.
The suggested ruling, which may come into effect in March, would limit breakfasts to 400 calories and lunches and dinners to 600 each.
The plan is intended to combat rising levels of obesity in the UK, with the latest NHS figures showing more than half of the British population as overweight or obese – 65 per cent of men and 58 per cent of women.
