Anecdata from my own grandparents (am Finnish) - diets were a bit less in calories, but also much simpler in nature. Finland has changed dramatically in the last 20 years, but say up to 1990's we didn't really have McDonalds, imported food, etc.
My grandfather is now over 90 years old, and his and my grandmothers diet has mainly been: 1) meats of different kind, sourced of course from grocery shops but also in a significant portion from nature (hunting) 2) fats, definitely of the saturated kind (animal + butter) 3) potatoes.
There were no salads, olive oils or anything deemed healthy by the modern standards on their plates. There were also no hamburgers, chips (or crisps if you're British), no coke (Coke arrived in Finland in the Olympic year 1952 - but it was deemed unhealthy VS orange soda, maybe by the benefit of the local soda company's marketing) and the main sugary treat was licorice candy and the occasional chocolate.
In summary, lower meal frequency would definitely be true, but also a diet with much more "close to source" ingredients.
My grandfather is now over 90 years old, and his and my grandmothers diet has mainly been: 1) meats of different kind, sourced of course from grocery shops but also in a significant portion from nature (hunting) 2) fats, definitely of the saturated kind (animal + butter) 3) potatoes.
There were no salads, olive oils or anything deemed healthy by the modern standards on their plates. There were also no hamburgers, chips (or crisps if you're British), no coke (Coke arrived in Finland in the Olympic year 1952 - but it was deemed unhealthy VS orange soda, maybe by the benefit of the local soda company's marketing) and the main sugary treat was licorice candy and the occasional chocolate.
In summary, lower meal frequency would definitely be true, but also a diet with much more "close to source" ingredients.