Dutchies stepping on the scales have been seeing the numbers steadily go up, says the latest data from the Health Survey from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).
While average height has only seen a small increase, Dutchies are slowly becoming heavier, the figures show. We don’t know how, given all that cycling, but suppose we can concede that stroopwafels are delicious.
Over the 37 year period, from 1981 to 2018, the average weight of women shot up an additional 7 kilos, despite the average height only increasing 1.5 centimetres. It’s almost twice as much of an overall weight increase compared to their male counterparts.
For men, the scales tipped up a further 9 kilos, but they managed to gain 3.8 centimetres of height. Tell us your secrets to gaining height please Nederlanders!
The results have led to CBS concluding that women have become ‘fairly considerably’ heavier, particularly taking into account the lack of change in their height.
Despite the overall findings, it could be that some outlying higher numbers are throwing off the results. Weighing over 100 kilos is more common nowadays, despite many people still weighing on or below the national average.
How tall is an average Dutchie today?
The average Dutch male is a whopping 181cm tall, a full 10 centimetres more than the world average of 171cm. Or, to put it into Dutch terms, around 3.3 bitterballen taller.
Meanwhile, women hover around the 167cm mark, about 7.5cm taller than the world average of 159.5cm. Or, as we like to say, around 3.5 bitterballen taller.
The tallest Dutchies will be found hanging out in the north (does that have something to do with it?) in Friesland and Groningen. Lower in both height and geography are those from Brabant and Limburg.
Are you impressed by the Dutch’s height prowess? Shocked that they’re supposedly wider than in the 80s? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Feature Image: Pixabay/Pexels
Very very interesting…. wonderful to know dacts of our new country
Living in Limburg at the moment and I need to admit that I noticed the same! When I came here, it was my first time in the south of The Netherlands, although I’ve been to the north more than once. The first difference I noticed is their height, as southern people are definitely shorter! 🙂 Also, southerns are friendlier and warmer and they live in smaller communities compared to the busy cities in the north, but they still eat a lot of fried food too. :))