Browse: Home / Obesity / And the gold medal for country with the greatest biomass goes to…

Menu

Skip to content
  • About
  • Better Body Chemistry School
  • Book a health conversation
  • Speaking query
  • The “Big” Spoons
Header image

BBC

Small things can make a big difference to your health

advertisement

Menu

Skip to content
  • Home
  • Free Resources
    • 31 days to Better Body Chemistry
    • Willpower Report
    • Weight loss e-course
    • Better Body Chemistry for Expecting Moms
    • The ups and downs of insulin resistance
    • Candy Floss Boards
    • Weight tracker
    • Sound bites
  • Library
  • Shop
  • Lucky dip
  • Buy me a coffee
  • Video gallery
  • Contact

And the gold medal for country with the greatest biomass goes to…

Posted by Dr Sandy on in Obesity | 150 Views | 1 Response
Share
Pin
Reddit
Tweet
WhatsApp
Share
More

the olympic biomass medalsThe world has gathered in London to find out who can jump the furthest, run the fastest etc. and ultimately which nation is the greatest.

One medal which is not up for grabs, is which nation has the highest collective biomass i.e. which nation is the biggest.

At first glance, the country with the highest collective biomass, should be the country with the most bodies. But bodies come in different sizes, so the calculation is not quite so straightforward.

Lining up the competitors

Using data from the United Nations and World Health Organization, a team of researchers set about awarding this medal. Compiling this kind of data takes quite a bit of time and effort, so this study is based on what was happening in the world in 2005.

They crunched the numbers to discover that the average global citizen in 2005 weighed in at around 62 kg.

So how do you fit in ? Are you average ?

If you’re thinking these people are smoking something – 62 kg is tantamount to being emaciated. Well it is a statistic that includes the starving millions, as well as the overweight and obese millions.

And the gold medal goes to…

After analyzing the vital stats from 190 countries, the 2005 gold medal was awarded to the citizens of the USA.

Curious who took the silver and the bronze ? I’ll let you peak at the top ten, it might surprise you…

  1. US
  2. Kuwait
  3. Croatia
  4. Qatar
  5. Egypt
  6. United Arab Emirates
  7. Trinidad and Tobago
  8. Argentina
  9. Greece
  10. Bahrain.

NOTE : It will be some time before all the data is gathered to assess who would win the medal now. I’m guessing there might be quite a few changes to the list.

So does biomass matter ?

Seven billion people on the planet and counting……. that means seven billion mouths to feed.

The 7 billion figure is making an assumption- all mouths need the same amount of food, but they don’t, all mouths are not created equal and in the end, this alters the energy calculations.

Exactly how much energy i.e. food, you need, to keep you going depends…

  • on physical activity, which is why , in theory anyway, you can burn off those extra calories. I said in theory – what it takes to burn off a can of coke is daunting and could be extremely disheartening
  • how big you are

All things being equal, bigger bodies need more calories.

Big calories behind the big

The idea that big bodies need more calories is easy to grasp when we look in the animal kingdom. A mouse needs to eat a lot less, than an elephant.

The same principle actually applies to humans – small people don’t only need less caffeine to generate buzzing, they also need less calories to keep them going.

So big people need more food than smaller people. It’s not greed, it is a genuine need – they need more food to keep themselves powered up.

We’re not feeding 7 billion…

The fact that how much food you need, is proportional to your size has some interesting, perhaps disturbing ramifications…

  • It means, current estimates of how many mouths the world needs to feed are inaccurate. Effectively we’re already way over 7 billion.
  • It also means, that as the obesity epidemic spreads around the globe, the effective human population is multiplying faster than we think. And lets be honest, it is already expanding at an alarming rate.

Feeding the future world is already a tall order…

Feeding a population that on average weighs more than 62 kg, is going to be even tougher.

Save the planet lose the weight

The greenie beanies are encouraging us to do our bit to SAVE THE PLANET. Maybe it is time to add, reduce that waist line, to your green habits.

The less there is of you, the less stress you’ll be putting on the planet and your pocket.

The weight of nations: an estimation of adult human biomass. BMC Public Health, (2012) 12:439.  Sarah C Walpole, David Prieto-Merino, Phil Edwards, John Cleland, Gretchen Stevens and Ian Roberts.
 

Interested in learning more about the chemistry behind all that biomass  ?

Subcribe to E-spoons, to get e-mail updates once a month to learn how to keep your body chemistry balanced so you can burn off the extra fat.

View previous E-spoons.

Close

NOTE : Privacy & spam policy. Spoonful of Science will not rent, trade or sell the e-mail list to anyone. You can unsubscribe at any time by following the unsubscribe link.

Know someone who will find this post useful ? Share it on facebook, linkedin, twitter

Further reading

high fat soccer player beats out low fat player muscle replenishing glycogen nootropic medicine cabinet
Use peanuts to power gold medal sports performances Caffeine the recipe for muscle “achievement” ? How to win a medal for brain performance

The 7 Big Spoons™…. are master switches that turn health on.

balance eicosanoids rein in insulin dial down stress sleep vitamin D microflora think
Balance Eicosanoids Rein in insulin Dial down stress Sleep ! Increase Vit D Culivate microflora Think champion

Hire Dr Sandy from a Spoonful of Science to be the keynote speaker at your next event.

Did you learn something new or do you have a different perspective ? I’d love to hear from you so post me a comment below

Share Button
Share
Pin
Reddit
Tweet
WhatsApp
Share
More
Posted in Obesity | Tagged biomass, calories, energy, food, gold medal, obese, olympics, overweight

Sugar gremlins are REAL

Connect with us

facebook you tube pinterest 40 google plus 40 Linkedin
willpower report
  • Popular
  • Featured
  • Recent
  • asprosin the sugar plum fairy

    Why sugar levels are high despite NOT eating

    20757 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    19916 views / Posted
  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    19190 views / Posted
  • chewing gum relieving postoperative ileus

    A stick of chewing gum gets the gut going after surgery

    16757 views / Posted
  • carbonated water bubbles fill you up

    Fizzing up the water flattens your appetite

    15600 views / Posted
  • sun extracting cholesterol

    Make sure you have your “annual” check-up in the summer time

    / Dr Sandy
  • sending your kid to bootcamp won't stop childhood obesity

    Moving more won’t stop your kid from getting fat

    / Dr Sandy
  • cholesterol at the scene of the accident

    Bone cells are stiffening up your arteries not cholesterol

    / Dr Sandy
  • brain size the problem in ADHD

    Are kids with ADHD just acting according to their brain age

    / Dr Sandy
  • plastering the blood vessel with calcium

    Calcium supplements are building bones and breaking hearts

    / Dr Sandy
  • nose feeling blocked

    A simple “cure” for chronic sinusitis

    / Dr Sandy
  • triglyceride sweeping up sugar

    Dietary fat and carbs DO MIX in a “good” way

    / Dr Sandy
  • what would batman eat

    Batman can rescue your child from poor food choices

    / Dr Sandy
  • grape shooting fat at a man eating grapes on the couch

    The inconvenient truth about eating more fruit to be healthy

    / Dr Sandy
  • beta cell asking for a dopamine hit

    The dopamine hit your beta cells need to function at their best

    / Dr Sandy

RSS Recent posts

Dr Sandy Dr Sandy Evans, PhD

Located in Johannesburg, South Africa

Disclaimer : The stories and articles are provided as a service. Dr Sandy's opinions are for information only, and are not intended to diagnose or prescribe. For your specific diagnosis and treatment, consult your doctor or health care provider.
 

Book an appointment

Calendar icon
 

Connect with Dr Sandy

facebook 40
you tube 40
pinterest 40
linkedin 40
 

Categories

Featured posts

  • asprosin the sugar plum fairy

    Why sugar levels are high despite NOT eating

    20757 views / Posted
  • poop getting stuck

    The fix for constipation is to go on a low fibre diet

    19916 views / Posted
  • oatmeal breakfast being beaten by egg

    Which is a better breakfast, egg or oatmeal ?

    19190 views / Posted
 

©2011-2022 Spoonful of Science

Menu

  • Meet Dr Sandy
  • Disclosure/disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Comment policy
  • Contact
Share
Pin
Reddit
Tweet
WhatsApp