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Danish breakfast habits not impressive

Christian Wenande
February 18th, 2016


This article is more than 8 years old.

Over half have their brekky alone

That image of the perfect family sitting together at the breakfast table before taking on the day is not a realistic representation of the typical Danish scenario.

According to a new Userneeds survey on behalf of Statoil, 54 percent of Danes eat breakfast alone and just half of the population eat their first meal of the day at the breakfast table.

“That doesn’t sound like a very good start to the day,” Preben Vestergaard Hansen, a lecturer on diet and health at Metropolitan University College in Copenhagen, told Metroxpress newspaper.

“Food is not just a biological phenomenon to cover nutritional needs, but it’s also social and identity-generating. You’re heading in the wrong direction by not eating meals together.”

READ MORE: Youngsters downing energy drinks for breakfast

10 percent standing
The survey also showed that 14 percent of Danes ate their meal in front of the TV, 11 percent at work, 10 percent standing up and 6 percent in front of their computer.

The survey also showed what most Danes eat, and again, Hansen was not impressed. Most choose to eat white bread and just 43 percent said they wanted their breakfast to be healthy.

“It’s a problem that so many prefer white bread as it goes against the dietary and health advice that we and the authorities give. This survey shows that things are not looking good in terms of getting the Danes to eat wholemeal,” said Hansen.


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A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”