NEW DELHI: According to a recent study, reducing sugar intake throughout the first 1,000 days of a child’s life, from conception to age two, appears to lower the risk of chronic diseases in adulthood.
According to a study in the journal Science, reducing sugar consumption in early childhood lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes by 35%, hypertension by 20%, and delays the beginning of the disease by two and four years.
“The findings suggest to limiting sugar intake both during pregnancy and early children as this can have lifelong influence on human health,” said Dr. Arun Gupta, chairperson of Nutrition Advocacy for Public Interest.
According to a University of Southern California study, children who were given sugar rations had a 30% lower chance of becoming obese.
Around 60,000 people were affected by sugar rationing in the UK in September 1953, as the country was still recuperating from World War 2.
It was discovered that while in-utero exposure to sugar limitation was sufficient to reduce hazards, postpartum exposure duration boosted disease protection.
The researchers discovered that although rationing limited sugar intake to levels that were within current nutritional standards, consumption almost quadrupled right after restricting.
The researchers examined adults conceived shortly before or after the end of rationing, based on data from the UK BioBank. According to the data, a person’s health is significantly shaped throughout the first 1,000 days of life. Researchers discovered that the primary distinction was the sugar exposure during the first 1,000 days thanks to the “natural experiment.”
Given that a third of a low-sugar diet affects the unborn child while in the womb, the mother’s diet during pregnancy was crucial. However, when sugar-rationing was reduced throughout pregnancy and when the infant was weaned onto solid foods, the biggest health gains were observed.
WHO PROVIDES GUIDELINES
- No added sugars should be consumed by children younger than two.
- Adults should try to consume no more than seven teaspoons of added sugar each day.
- Adults should limit their sugar intake to 12 teaspoons, or 50g.
