Research shows the UK has had success reducing sugar.
United Kingdom cities of OXFORD and LEEDS Promising outcomes for sugar reduction in the UK towards the end of the previous decade are shown by two studies released in the first month of the current decade. According to one study, the amount of sugar in soft drinks has decreased by 30%, while another study discovered that the total amount of sugar in yogurt has decreased by 13%.
The soft drink study was conducted by researchers from the University of Oxford and was published online in BMC Medicine on January 13; it can be accessed here. According to their findings, there was a 30% decrease in the amount of sugar sold per person per day from soft drinks in the United Kingdom between 2015 and 2018. This translates to a daily reduction of 4.6 grams of sugar per person.
Following the implementation of an industry levy on soft drinks in April 2018, the rate of reductions increased. Goods with more than 8 grams of sugar per 100 milliliters were subject to a 24 pence per liter levy. Goods with five to eight grams were subject to an 18 pence per liter levy.
Soft drink sales-weighted mean sugar content decreased from 4.4 grams per 100 milliliters in 2015 to 2.9 grams per 100 milliliters in 2018. Soft drink volume sales subject to the levy decreased by 50% overall. Soft drink sales with fewer than 5 grams of sugar per 100 milliliters increased by 40% overall.
According to the data, the launch of new, lower-sugar drinks or the reformulation of already-existing goods accounted for 73% of the drop. The remaining 27% of the decrease was caused by modifications in consumer behavior. The two largest businesses, Coca-Cola Co. and Britvic P.L.C., saw a 17% and 26% decrease in the amount of sugar in their drinks, respectively.
The cross-sectional study combined volume sales data for 195 brands sold by 57 enterprises with nutrient composition data of 7,377 goods that were gathered online. Although bottled water and 100% juice were exempt from the levy, the study separated the soft drinks into eight categories: carbonates, concentrates, 100% juice, energy drinks, sports drinks, and others.
The funding was given by the University of Oxford’s Nuffield Department of Population Health.
Scientists from the University of Leeds participated in the yogurt study, which was published online in Nutrients on January 8. You can find it right here. The findings showed that in just two years, the median sugar content of yogurt products in the UK decreased by 13%.
After gathering 893 yogurt, fromage frais, and dairy dessert items, the researchers discovered that the median total sugar level decreased from 11.9 grams per 100 grams in 2016 to 10.4 grams per 100 grams in January 2019.
The study found that 354, or around 40%, of the 893 items were new, indicating a “dynamic” turnover in yogurt products offered throughout the 26 months in between the surveys. The names of the remaining 539 goods were identical in the databases from 2016 and 2019. Of the 539 paired goods, 32% had lower sugar concentrations, 61% had constant sugar levels, and 7% had higher sugar amounts. The study’s findings indicated that the overall median decreased as a result of higher-sugar goods being phased out.
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Compared to 9% in 2016, 15% of all items were classified as low sugar in 2019, which means they had 5 grams or less of sugar per 100 grams. In the children’s category, 61% of the items and 43% of the fruit category products had less sugar overall.
The greatest strategy to avoid obesity and safeguard our teeth, especially for young children, is to limit our sugar intake, according to Bernadette Moore, Ph.D., an associate professor of obesity at Leeds University’s School of Food Science and Nutrition. These are positive results that provide valuable information into the state of the market, but new studies have revealed that people are generally unaware of the amount of sugar in their meals. yogurt insidein particular has what is known as a “health halo,” in which the sugar content of items deemed healthful is understated.
“Yogurt can undoubtedly be healthy, but the type of milk used and the ingredients added during production—which frequently include extra sugars and other sweeteners—determine the final nutritional composition.”
Dairy substitutes accounted for 67 goods in 2019 (or 7.5% of all products), up from 38 (or 4.2% of all products) in 2016. According to the survey, 27% of the dairy substitute products had more than 10 grams of sugar per 100 grams, while 37% of the goods in this category had fewer than 5 grams.
Dr. Moore stated that “plant-based and dairy alternative milks have grabbed people’s interest for a number of ethical and environmental reasons.” The emergence of yogurts with almond and cashew nut bases, as well as a growth in soy and coconut based yogurts, is indicative of this trend. Research is now being done to see whether plant-based yogurts have the same nutritional value and health advantages as those derived from cow’s milk.
The median sugar level of organic fruit yogurts and organic natural/Greek yogurts was higher than that of their non-organic counterparts. There were no discernible variations in the median sugar levels between the dessert and flavored categories.
The study said that it is impossible to completely rule out the possibility that organic products have a larger percentage of milk due to the inherent lactose and galactose from lactose fermentation, which raises the overall sugar level.