Koreans drink 1.7 cups of coffee a day

By Lee Kyung-min

Koreans drink an average of 1.7 cups of coffee per day, consuming the beverage more frequently than rice, a government survey showed Monday.

An average 11.99 cups of coffee per week is consumed, according to the survey of 3,417 people aged between 19 and 64. The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted the survey.

The weekly frequency of coffee intake was higher than those of many other foods, as people ate rice 6.52 times per week, multigrain rice 8.93 times and kimchi 10.76 times.

Some 66 percent said they drink coffee at least once a day, including 24.4 percent who drink at least three cups of coffee and 22.9 percent who had two cups. Only 12 percent said they do not drink coffee at all.

People consume doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew), another delicacy here, 1.15 times a week, instant noodles 1.14 times, and milk 2.34 times.

Other popular food items included fried egg, dried seaweed, and stir-fried anchovies. The most frequently eaten fruit are apples, followed by tangerines, bananas and tomatoes.

In the meantime, a separate study showed that Koreans remain seated for 7.5 hours a day on average.

According to the ministry’s survey of 5,000 people aged 19 or older, those aged between 19 and 29 spent some 8.7 hours a day in a chair, the longest hours among all age groups.

The older the respondents were, the fewer hours they spent sitting, with those in their 30s remaining seated for 7.6 hours a day, followed by 7.3 hours for those in their 40s, 7.1 hours for people in their 50s and 6.7 hours for those in their 60s.

More hours were spent sitting by those living in urban areas rather than rural areas, and higher income earners rather than lower earners, the study added.

The study also showed that people sleep an average of 6.8 hours a day.

The older they are, the less they sleep.