People in France sleep and eat the most, says OECD
June 17, 2009
The French win for most time spent at the table and in bed, according to international study
A recent study by the OECD showed that compared to other societies, the French spend the most time eating and sleeping.
On average, the French get 8.8 hours of sleep each night, enjoying more rest than Americans and even Spaniards. (Perhaps some of them still get a siesta during the day.) Compared to the French, the Japanese and South Koreans both sleep a full hour less.
The French also devote nearly double the time to meals than do Americans, Britons or Mexicans. Meals in France are still culturally important rituals, the advent of globalization and fast food notwithstanding.
The effects of these habits are, on the surface, surprising. While the French spend much more time at the table than Americans, for example, they do not suffer from obesity at anything like the rate that has reached near-epidemic proportions in the US. This is because they do not actually consume more food during their time at the table, which would suggest that the French might eat less than Americans, and certainly eat more slowly. Eating slowly and deliberately is a practice that is often cited as a habit that favors healthy weight and weight loss. The French diet consists of more fresh food, and less processed foods, than the American diet, another contributing factor.
Other recent studies in the US have also linked sleep and weight; those who sleep at least 8 hours per night are less likely to be obese than those who sleep less. So again, the French have one more reason to be thinner than Americans, despite spending less time awake and more time at the dinner table.
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