Sugar Update – Cold Hard Facts from around the Globe

Let’s unravel the truth by numbers on today’s sugar crisis

Not all carbohydrates are bad for you. As you probably know by now, you can practically group carbohydrates into three big groups based on the colour and the nutrition they provide: white (sugar), brown (starch), and green (fibre). Among the three, the white carbohydrates (sugar) are deemed unhealthy. In this article, we’ll give you some cold hard facts and updates on increased sugar consumption (white carbohydrates) around the world and the unforeseen crisis it has brought upon our health now and over the past 50 plus years.

On a global scale, the sugar consumption per person averaged around 14.5kg per year during the 1960s.

Add 50 years to that (up to the 2000s), and the average sugar consumption per person rose to 18.6kg. During that period of 50 years, sugar consumption has climbed up insidiously, and beneath the radar of concerned health authorities.

The table below compares the yearly sugar consumption in kg per person from 1960 to the present in the following countries:

Country	1960 in kg/year	1970 in kg/year	1980 in kg/year	1990 in kg/year	2000 in kg/year	2010-present in kg/year
Australia	50	48	48	41	35	35
Austria	35	32	37	36	39	38
Canada	40	44	36	35	35	28
Finland	42	45	33	35	32	25
France	28	40	30	31	32	32
Germany	31	33	38	27	31	35
Greece	13	19	24	32	28	23
Iceland	50	54	48	45	33	34
Ireland	48	51	39	39	26	26
Israel	32	38	31	38	47	26
Italy	23	32	31	27	27	21
Japan	14	28	23	22	18	19
Norway	40	44	26	37	39	31
Netherlands	44	45	42	55	40	41
New Zealand	37	42	39	45	50	46
Spain	18	26	32	25	29	26
Sweden	42	41	40	39	40	33
Switzerland	48	46	32	40	46	40
UK	47	45	39	38	34	34
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In general, for most of the countries included in the table, the yearly sugar consumption per person steadily increased from the 1960s up until the 2000s. Since 2010, the average yearly sugar consumption per person around the world has slowly declined in most countries. This can be attributed to the fact that people have become more vigilant about the negative effects of too much sugar in their diet and have consequently reduced their sugar intake.

The Negative Impact of Increased Sugar Consumption on Our Health during the Past 50 Years

Sugar does make its annoying presence felt long after your body has finished utilising it. Kind of insulting huh? For the past 50 years, diseases caused by or linked to increased sugar consumption have calmly made their way into our lives and also into the lives of our children. Below are some of the latest facts, findings, numbers, and statistics on them.

Increased sugar consumption and children’s health
- Children residing in the most socio-economically deprived neighbourhoods were 2.5 times as likely to be obese as children living in the least deprived neighbourhoods.
- Increase in food serving sizes, the wide availability of sugar sweetened beverages, and the rising popularity of movie streaming services (Netflix, Hulu, HBO, etc.) which have made our children less physically active, have become recent problems that were not present in previous decades. They have all played a hand in making the fight against obesity a formidable one.
- A study done in Auckland, New Zealand in 2004 showed a sharp rise in the number of cases of type 2 diabetes mellitus among adolescents. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 1.8% in 1996, and 11.0% in 2002, and Increased sugar consumption among these adolescents was an undeniable significant contributing factor. Since this time obesity‐related type 2 diabetes now accounts for a substantial proportion of diabetes in the adolescent age group. Adverse cardiovascular risk factors are prevalent in this age group and Public health measures continue to be urgently required to curtail the rise of obesity in childhood and adolescence.
- The potential of sugar sweetened beverages to affect our children’s weight status will depend on their total caloric intake in relation to sugar sweetened beverages. Sugar sweetened beverages include juices with additional sugars, sodas or soft drinks, sports drinks, sweet tea, and energy drinks. Consumption of these drinks has dramatically increased over the past several decades in all parts of the globe.
- A local study done in New Zealand in 2017 showed that in a population of greater than 8,000 students/adolescents: - more than 35% had consumed energy drinks during the past week - 12% of those drank energy drinks at least 4 times per week What on earth were they going to do with all that energy?
- Australians aren’t left far behind either. A study done in 2016 among a population of almost 400 adolescents revealed surprising results. - 56% said that they had consumed energy drinks at some point in their life - the mean age of this group was as young as 10 years old. Imagine a 10-year-old hyped up on energy drinks! - 36% of the same population stated that they had exceeded the limit of 2 energy drinks per day.
- The volume of energy drinks consumed in the UK has increased from 463 million litres in 2010 to 672 million litres in 2015 according to the British Soft Drinks Association. - 69% of UK adolescents and 24% of UK children stated that they have consumed energy drinks at least once in the past year. - 19% of UK adolescents said that they’re chronic energy drink consumers on most days of the week! It is because of these alarming statistics that the UK has joined countries like Mexico, South Africa, Portugal, some cities in the US, and France in imposing sugar tax on sugar sweetened beverages.
- 2016 was dubbed as the year of the sugar tax. This was a direct result of the 2015 publication of the WHO's Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases 2013 – 2020. As of May 2018, there are 39 national governments, states, and cities that have imposed sugar taxation. We have yet to document the long-term effects of this taxation fully.
Increased sugar consumption and adult health
- Currently, we are experiencing an epidemic of cardiorenal diseases characterised by increasing rates of obesity, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and kidney disease. Increased sugar consumption and physical inactivity are likely important mechanisms driving this epidemic.
- The prevalence of hypertension for adult New Zealanders is 31%, with 15% stating that they’re taking antihypertensive medications. In 2015, 34% of Australians aged 18 years and older had high blood pressure. In both countries, the rise in sugar consumption leads to unwanted weight gain and obesity and increased risk for high blood pressure.
Increased sugar consumption and dental health
- There has been a decline in the prevalence of dental cavities in New Zealand for the past 50 years. Unfortunately, exact numbers are very hard to estimate. The change in the prevalence of cavities has been attributed to additional fluoride supplementation, better dental care, and increased awareness of oral hygiene. This trend is also evident on a worldwide scale. Unfortunately dental cavities are still present in all age groups despite a decrease in its prevalence. Increased sugar consumption does play a significant role in the development of dental cavities.
- Periodontitis, which is inflammation of your gums and the supporting structures of your teeth, remains unchanged with respect to prevalence. Severe periodontitis affects approximately 10% of the global population.
- Australia’s Oral Health Tracker has revealed that 90% of Australian adults have some form of tooth decay. They also highlighted that much of these cases are worsened by smoking, drinking, and increased sugar consumption, especially from sugar sweetened beverages. This increased sugar consumption was also mirrored among children.
Have you checked out your children’s school lunches recently?
- Currently, in both New Zealand and Australia, there are no health authorities or privately funded health groups monitoring the food available in schools. Presently, non-nutritious food and drinks are still freely available to children at their schools. As most of us already know, healthy eating is essential for health, is school not the ideal time and place to learn this valuable life skill?
- A child that has a healthy diet will have optimal growth, cognitive development, and may prevent the development of chronic diseases later in life. Local researchers have stated that New Zealand schools need a national health policy. This policy should be aimed at fighting diet-related diseases like diabetes and obesity.
- Fruit in Schools (FIS) is a programme started by the Ministry of Health in New Zealand way back in 2005. As of the beginning of school term 1 of 2017, there were already 543 schools participating in the programme. Students receive a free piece of fresh produce daily. This programme is a recent good example of educating our children about making these healthy choices.
- Approximately two-thirds of Australian teachers (67%) say that children go to school without eating breakfast. You can just imagine what their appetite will be once they reach the lunch break. Imagine if nothing healthy is available? Some schools have breakfast programs where students can eat before classes begin. Teachers report that students are more attentive and have an easier time concentrating after they have breakfast.
- We need health policies that will encourage and motivate schools to provide and educate about nutritious food to our children.

The facts, statistics, and updates presented in this article are just some examples as to why sugar consumption should be kept on a guarded level. Sugar has a known addictive nature. The more you consume sugar, the more your body craves for it. And this addiction can increase in magnitude over time. Let’s not forget about the steady climb in the number of cases of dental cavities, periodontitis, obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, all partially attributed to increased sugar consumption.

Increased sugar consumption is not a personal problem limited to any one person. It encompasses different nationalities and global regions. Above all, it should be fought at all levels and should incorporate medical, social, environmental, and international measures.