Costa Rica Health – The Latin American Study of Nutrition and Health shows results that indicate that Ticos do not consume enough fruits, vegetables and fish.
This leaves them without some needed nutrients and at risk for obesity.
The “casado,” for example, is the traditional dish and it is normally high in calories and very unbalanced. The Tico diet tends to be high in carbohydrates added sugars. This is one reason why two out of three Costa Ricans in urban areas between ages 15 and 65 is overweight.
Costa Ricans consume a similar, even a bit lower, amount of calories as in other countries in the region but they are often empty calories. We shouldn’t eat rice with pasta and potatoes, rather mix in legumes, fruits, vegetables and fish with our carbs.
Many Costa Ricans eat just one serving of fruits and vegetables per day when we should get five servings per day. Ideally, we will also get three servings of fish per week. The study also showed that 100% of men and women studied need more vitamin D and 97.5% of women and 90.4% of men need more calcium in their diet.
