How Norwegians Eat Their Way To Being Among The World's Healthiest People (2024)

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How Norwegians Eat Their Way To Being Among The World's Healthiest People (1)

Unesco recently released its Human Development Report, which makes Norway a model of health for the rest world. The report looks at many factors, including life expectancy and average number of years spent in school. Norway ranked number one in their data.

Since Norway is setting a good example for how to live, we thought now would be a good time to take a look at how Norwegians eat. Here’s what you should know:

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The Norwegian breakfast doesn’t look anything like a traditional American breakfast.

Breakfast is a light affair often involving Norwegian rye bread cheese, jam and butter. There’s also often meat and fish, like salami, ham, smoked salmon or pickled herring. Muesli is also common. And coffee is a must.

Heavy egg dishes are not the norm here.

In Norway, cheese reigns supreme ― especially when it’s brown.

Brunost, a brown cheese like no other, is beloved in its uniqueness. It’s a whey cheese that’s sweet and has a caramel-like texture. It’s often peeled in thin slices and eaten on open-faced sandwiches (as pictured above).

The cuisine is shaped by the need to preserve.

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Norway is not only surrounded by the sea, but its climate is such that it demands preservation. The short growing season and cold weather in Norway make it a necessity for survival.

Even the nation’s flatbread bread, lefse, was first developed to stay good in the pantry for months. (This is not the type of lefse typically made today, which is made with potatoes in place of flour, that’s not as shelf stable. Lefse might not be as common as it once was, but when it is made its served as a sweet and wholly delicious.)

Norwegian fish (and seafood) is unparalleled.

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And that’s one of the reasons that cured, smoked, pickled, dried, and yes, even sometimes just fresh fish, is so popular in Norway. It makes sense that Norway has such a strong seafood culture ― there’s a high coast-per-land ratio. They eat fish for breakfast, as we mentioned above. They serve it for lunch on open-faced sandwiches. You can even get tubed caviar at the grocery store ― that’s how serious they are about their seafood.

Their cold, wet climate means they get some of the sweetest berries around.

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The most prized being the cloudberry. The cloudberry only grows in the wild, and picking locations are guarded like family secrets. They’re often served simply, with whipped cream, or made into jams to preserve them for the many months when cloudberries aren’t in season.

Waffles are eaten as an afternoon snack.

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They’re thicker and richer than American waffles, and they often come heart-shaped. Norwegian waffles are often eaten with brown cheese, naturally, or with sour cream and jam. Of course, they aren’t only eaten in the afternoon, but it is common to have a waffle with coffee as a snack.

The Norwegians’ love of cake is strong.

How Norwegians Eat Their Way To Being Among The World's Healthiest People (7)

Norwegians are credited with creating the world’s best cake, after all. It’s called Kvæfjordkake and is the beautiful culmination of sponge cake, vanilla cream, almonds and meringue. But that’s not their only noteworthy cake ― they’re all show-stoppers in their own right.

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Looks like even the healthiest nations have a sweet tooth.

How Norwegians Eat Their Way To Being Among The World's Healthiest People (2024)

FAQs

How Norwegians Eat Their Way To Being Among The World's Healthiest People? ›

The Nordic diet is often compared to the Mediterranean diet because it has similar aspects. This diet places an emphasis on seasonal vegetables, unprocessed food, seafood as well as whole grains. Local foods such as fish and reindeer meat are a big staple.

How do Norwegians stay healthy? ›

The Nordic diet is often compared to the Mediterranean diet because it has similar aspects. This diet places an emphasis on seasonal vegetables, unprocessed food, seafood as well as whole grains. Local foods such as fish and reindeer meat are a big staple.

How do Norwegians eat? ›

Most Norwegians eat three or four regular meals a day, usually consisting of a cold breakfast with coffee, a cold (usually packed) lunch at work and a hot dinner at home with the family.

How to eat healthy in Norway? ›

Choose foods with limited amounts of saturated fat, sugar and salt. Look for the Keyhole when shopping for food. It makes it easier to plan a healthy, varied and good diet. berries, whole grain foods, and fish and limited amounts of processed meat, red meat, salt and sugar.

Why is Norway the healthiest country in the world? ›

The Nordic nations keep on coming. Norway's universal healthcare system, enviable outdoors lifestyle, nutritious diet and easy access to health and wellness services see them steal a spot as one of our healthiest countries.

What is the diet of people in Norway? ›

Very similar to the Mediterranean diet, the Nordic diet focuses on whole foods that are typically found in Nordic regions like Norway, Denmark and Iceland. You'll eat mostly plant-based, seasonal foods that are high in protein, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats.

What is the diet and nutrition in Norway? ›

Limit the amount of processed meat and red meat you consume. Include lean dairy products as part of your daily diet. Choose cooking oils, liquid margarine and soft margarine over hard margarine and butter. Choose foods with a low salt content and limit the use of salt when preparing food.

What is a typical Norwegian breakfast? ›

Breakfast. Norwegian breakfasts tend to revolve around sea, with meals including smoked salmon, fish in various sauces and marinades (such as sardines in mustard sauce or tomato sauce, or pickled herring), smoked whitefish served with hard-boiled eggs or caviar (kaviar in Norwegian).

Do Norwegians eat oatmeal? ›

Porridge has had quite the role throughout Norway's history. In fact, it is quite possibly the oldest hot dish in the Norwegian diet. The main grains used were barley and oats, as it was difficult to grow other grains in the cold climate.

What is the main meal in Norway? ›

Lamb or mutton is the main ingredient in many traditional dishes in Norway. Norwegian lamb meat is especially tender and juicy, since the lambs graze in vast expanses of untouched nature, with clean flowing water and rich vegetation. In autumn, you should try the Fårikål, lamb stew with cabbage, Norway's national dish!

What do Norway eat for lunch? ›

It doesn't have to be complicated. The traditional Norwegian matpakke consists of slices of freshly baked bread (often as open-faced sandwiches) with a favourite pålegg (fillings and toppings), and maybe a few slices of fruit or vegetables, or berries.

What are the four meals a day in Norway? ›

There are four standard meals in Norway: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and kveldsmat. The word literally translates to “evening food.” The Norwegian kveldsmat is actually breakfast food, exactly the same as what's eaten at the beginning of the day. Kveldsmat is something extra.

Why is Norway so wealthy? ›

The country has a very high standard of living compared with other European countries. Norway's modern manufacturing and welfare system rely on a financial reserve produced by exploitation of natural resources, particularly North Sea oil.

What is the healthiest diet in the world? ›

The Mediterranean diet has been ranked the healthiest way to eat by US News & World Report. The eating plan is flexible, full of whole foods and plants, and is linked to longevity benefits. Experts say the best diets are easy to follow, not restrictive, and focus on unprocessed foods.

Why do Norwegians have such good skin? ›

Hydration-Focused Skincare

When it comes to skincare, Scandinavian women put emphasis on hydration, both internally and externally. Drinking a lot of water is paramount, and the Nordic countries have some of the cleanest tap waters in the world.

What do Norwegians have for breakfast? ›

Breakfast. Norwegian breakfasts tend to revolve around sea, with meals including smoked salmon, fish in various sauces and marinades (such as sardines in mustard sauce or tomato sauce, or pickled herring), smoked whitefish served with hard-boiled eggs or caviar (kaviar in Norwegian).

How do Norwegians lose weight? ›

Discover how eating like some Scandinavians could be better for the environment and even lead to weight loss. Plant-based, seasonal foods with a healthy dose of fish and seafood and a limit on processed foods are the key components of a Nordic diet. What is this?

Do Norwegians eat a lot of bread? ›

Norwegians are at the top of the list when it comes to who eats the most bread in the world. On average, each of us consumes 38.5 kilos a year!

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