Children eat nearly twice as much ice cream as adults in summer

Danish children and teenagers consume almost double the amount of ice cream as adults during the summer months, according to data from DTU Food Institute reported by DR.

The figures show that 4- to 17-year-olds eat an average of 34 grams of ice cream per day in summer, equivalent to nearly half a Magnum. Adults aged 18 to 81 consume 19 grams daily. The data covers both dairy and water-based ice cream.

Sisse Fagt, a senior advisor at DTU Food Institute, said the trend aligns with rising sugar consumption among youth in recent years. “We’ve seen children’s sugar intake increase for many years, so it’s expected they’d also eat more ice cream,” she said.

Nutritional content varies widely: a 34-gram Magnum Classic contains 6.5 grams of fat, 9.2 grams of sugar, and 106 calories, while a Filur ice pop has just 26 calories and 6 grams of sugar.

Inge Tetens, a professor of nutrition and health at the University of Copenhagen, said ice cream can fit into a balanced diet—if it replaces other sweets. “You can eat half an ice cream a day, but it should be instead of other candy, not in addition,” she said, citing high sugar and fat content in dairy ice cream. She recommended following national guidelines limiting sweet snacks to five handfuls per week.

The summer period in the study spans June to August. Previous DTU data from 2023 showed Danish children consumed up to four times the recommended amount of sugary treats.