About 20% of adults report they are on a diet, down from a peak of 31% in 1991, according to NPD’s National Eating Trends food and beverage market research.
Women are leading the decline in dieting. In the past 10 years, the percentage of women on a diet has dropped by about 10 points. In 1992, 34% of women told NPD they were on a diet and in 2012, 23% of women reported being on a diet.
Harry Balzer, vice president of The NPD Group and author of The 27th Annual Eating Patterns in America Report, said: “Our data suggests that dieters are giving up on diets more quickly than in the past. In 2004, 66% of all dieters said they were on a diet for at least 6 months.
In 2012, that number dropped to 62%. Perhaps people are not seeing results quickly enough. Americans still want to lose weight, but we are seeing a change in attitudes about being overweight.”
Last year, 23% of Americans agree that people who are not overweight look a lot more attractive. That number is down substantially from 55% of Americans in 1985.
“This is one of the biggest changes in our attitudes about health over the last 30 years,” said Balzer.
Source: The NPD Group
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