They propose to reduce by 40% the sugar in soft drinks to curb obesity
The sugary drinks are an important source of sugar intake, both in children and adults, and represent an important factor contributing to overweight and obesity-related diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. This is what has been revealed in a recent study published in the magazine The Lancet.
This study goes further and proposes that a gradual and staggered reduction over 5 years, 40 percent of the sugar added to soft drinks and juices could significantly reduce obesity and diabetes in the world population.
Less sugar, less obesity, overweight and diabetes
This study published in the section of Diabetes and Endocrinology of the magazine The Lancet has used data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey and the annual reports of the British Soft Drinks Association to calculate the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (with and without fruit juices) and their contribution to sugar and energy intake in the population of the United Kingdom.
The study method calculates the predicted reduction in energy consumption and reduction in body weight using a weight loss model.
The results estimate that a reduction of 40 percent in sugars added to sweetened beverages over more than 5 years, would lead to an average reduction of 20 kg in adults over 5 years.
This reduction would positively affect adults with overweight and obesity in the world and would prevent approximately 274,000 to 309,000 incidents of diabetes related to type 2 obesity, if the expected reduction in body weight is achieved during the two decades after .
If you exclude fruit juices from the category of sugar-sweetened beverages (due to possible challenges for reformulation), you could prevent from about 221,000 to 250,000 cases of type 2 diabetes, if during the two decades after the predicted reduction in body weight. The predicted effect would be higher in adolescents, young adults and people from low-income families, who consume more sugar-sweetened beverages.
How to get this healthy proposal?
Researchers believe that the reduction of 40 percent of sugar in soft drinks and sugary drinks such as juices would not have an increase in costs for the industry. However, it would have very significant health benefits to reduce the prevalence of overweight, obesity and type 2 diabetes. This study invites to follow the strategy proposed immediately, which could be used in combination with other approaches, such as fiscal policies for produce a more powerful effect.
Marisol Nuevo Espín
