Tobacco companies hook kids on sugary drinks

 

UCSF :Tobacco conglomerates that used colors, flavors and marketing techniques to entice children as future smokers transferred these same strategies to sweetened beverages when they bought food and drinks companies starting in 1963, according to a study by researchers at UC San Francisco.
The study, which draws from a cache of previously secret documents from the tobacco industry that is part of the UCSF Industry Documents Library tracked the acquisition and subsequent marketing campaigns of sweetened drink brands by two leading tobacco companies: R.J. Reynolds and Philip Morris. It found that as tobacco was facing increased scrutiny from health authorities, its executives transferred the same products and tactics to peddle soft drinks. The study was published in the March 2019 issue of BMJ.

Graphic Warning Labels Linked to Reduced Sugary Drink Purchases

APS: Warning labels that include photos linking sugary drink consumption with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and tooth decay may reduce purchases of the drinks, according to research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. In a field study conducted in a hospital cafeteria, researchers found that graphic warning labels reduced sugary beverage purchases by 14.8%, while text warning labels and calorie labels had no effect.

Study explores carbohydrates’ impact on head, neck cancers

Illinois: Consuming high amounts of carbohydrates and various forms of sugar during the year prior to treatment for head and neck cancer may increase patients’ risks of cancer recurrence and mortality, a new study reports. However, eating moderate amounts of fats and starchy foods such as whole grains, potatoes and legumes after treatment could have protective benefits, reducing patients’ risks of disease recurrence and death, said lead author Anna E. Arthur, a professor of food science and human nutrition at the University of Illinois.

How rare sugars might help control blood glucose

ACS: In an era when the label “natural” hits a sweet spot with consumers, some uncommon sugars emerging on the market could live up to the connotation. Preliminary animal studies have suggested that allulose and other low-calorie, natural rare sugars could help regulate glucose levels. Now, researchers are investigating how they might exert such effects. They report their findings in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

From mother to baby: ‘Secondhand sugars’ can pass through breast milk

USC: Add breast milk to the list of foods and beverages that contain fructose, a sweetener linked to health issues ranging from obesity to diabetes. A new study by researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of USC indicates that a sugar called fructose is passed from mother to infant through breast milk. The proof-of-concept study involving 25 mothers and infants provides preliminary evidence that even fructose equivalent to the weight of a grain of rice in a full day’s serving of breast milk is associated with increased body weight, muscle and bone mineral content.

Fact or fiction – is sugar addictive?

TheConversation: Some of us can definitely say we have a sweet tooth. Whether it’s cakes, chocolates, cookies, lollies or soft drinks, our world is filled with intensely pleasurable sweet treats. Sometimes eating these foods is just too hard to resist. As a nation, Australians consume, on average, 60 grams (14 teaspoons) of table sugar (sucrose) a day. Excessive consumption of sugar is a major contributor to the increasing rates of obesity in both Australia and globally. Eating sugary foods can become ingrained into our lifestyles and routines. That spoonful of sugar makes your coffee taste better and dessert can feel like the best part of dinner. If you’ve ever tried to cut back on sugar, you may have realised how incredibly difficult it is. For some people it may seem downright impossible. This leads to the question: can you be addicted to sugar?

Association between sugary diet and coronary artery disease

Lund University: What connection is there between food and drink with added sugar and coronary artery disease? Until recently, the question had been inadequately answered by research, but an extensive study from Lund University in Sweden has now contributed important clues. The study in question focuses on sucrose. Sucrose occurs naturally in fruit and vegetables, but the majority of our consumption is through added sucrose. Besides sweetened beverages, cakes and sweets, sucrose is added to many ordinary foods, such as dairy products, bread and jam. In Sweden, sucrose is the most common form of added sugar.

How key metabolic markers for disease can be changed by cutting sugar in a child’s diet in just 9 days.

SugarScience: A recent study¹ argues that the health detriments of sugar, and fructose specifically, are independent of its caloric value or effects on weight.  The study included 43 (Latino and African American) kiddos who were given a sugar-restricted diet for 9 days.  These kids were diagnosed as obese and had at least one other chronic metabolic disorder, such as high triglyceride levels, a marker of fatty liver or hypertension. The sugar restricted meals they ate instead were “child friendly” and consisted of a variety of starches that were low or no sugar added processed foods.

Fructose produces less rewarding sensations in the brain

Basel: Fructose not only results in a lower level of satiety, it also stimulates the reward system in the brain to a lesser degree than glucose. This may cause excessive consumption accompanied by effects that are a risk to health, report researchers from the University of Basel in a study published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE. Various diseases have been attributed to industrial fructose in sugary drinks and ready meals.

Sugary drinks killing 'hundreds of thousands', study estimates

NHS: “Sugary drinks are killing 184,000 adults around the world every year, says study,” The Independent reports. This is the alarming claim of researchers who created a model of sugary drink-related deaths based on global consumption rates. They defined sugary drinks as any sugar-sweetened fizzy drinks, fruit drinks (not pure fruit juice), sweetened iced teas, sports or energy drinks, or homemade sugary drinks. The model used a large amount of data on the consumption of sugary drinks from national surveys, and on the effect of sugary drink consumption on body mass index (BMI) and risk of diabetes, and the knock-on effect of BMI on heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

Is sugar as evil as they claim?

Calgary: Is there a place for sugar in our diets?
A balance of calorie intake from the three sources of calories (protein, carbohydrate and fat) is important. Health Canada recommends about half of our daily calorie intake should come from carbohydrates.
The term “carbohydrate” refers to foods rich in starch (bread, rice, pasta), or any food that is rich in sugar (fruit and foods with added sugar such as desserts, candy, etc.). Complex carbs (whole grains, oats, etc.) are recommended as the main source of carbohydrates, as they generally have more nutritive value, more fibre and a lower glycemic index.

Blame sugar? We’ve been doing that for over 100 years

TheConversation: After a successful soda tax was passed last year in Berkeley, California, copycat laws are being proposed across the US, often with the support of nutritionists, medical professionals and a majority of the voting public. On May 28, the Illinois chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics endorsed an act that would use a tax on sugary drinks. Research has implicated sugar (meaning both table sugar and high fructose corn syrup) in the rising obesity rate and in health conditions like Type 2 Diabetes. Some researchers, including Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist from the University of California San Francisco, have described sugar as toxic. While we know that Americans are consuming a lot more sugar now than they have in the past, we don’t know at what amount it goes from being a sweet treat to something dangerous. Nor do we know how much of that danger is due to sugar’s unique effects, as opposed to its being a contributor to excessive caloric intake.

New research claims hidden sugar in supposedly healthy snacks

British Heart Foundation: New research released has revealed the high amounts of hidden sugar in supposedly healthy snacks targeted at children. Our Senior Dietitian, Victoria Taylor, explains that it is not always easy to identify healthy food options and that is why we need clear colour coding on the front of food packaging. The research, released by Action on Sugar, shows that of the ‘healthy’ fruit snack products surveyed, including Fruit Bowl Fruit Flakes Raspberry Rush (25g), The Fruit Factory Sports Mix-Ups (5x18g) and Whitworths Sunny Raisin Coated Custard Raisins (25g); over three quarters (85%) contain more sugars than Haribo Starmix (47g/100g) confectionary per 100g – with some containing over 4 teaspoons per portion.

Don't deny, you eat too much sugar!

NHS: "Obese people are in denial about the amount of sugar they eat," the Mail Online reports. Researchers looking into the link between sugar consumption and obesity found a "huge gap" between overweight people's self-reported sugar consumption and the reality, according to the news story. Researchers assessed the self-reported sugar consumption (based on food diaries) and sugar levels in urine samples in about 1,700 people in Norfolk. After three years, they had their body mass index (BMI) measured.

WHO releases sugar guidelines

Scimex: The World Health Organization (WHO) has today released their final guidelines on sugar intake in both adults and children. The guidelines recommend adults and children reduce their daily intake of sugars, excluding sugar in fruits, vegetables and milk, to less than 10% of their total energy intake. A further reduction to below 5% or roughly 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day would provide additional health benefits.

Should we take That Sugar Film with a grain of salt?

Deakin University. Australia: That Sugar Film's dramatic depiction of how taking things to the extreme can be harmful might well have entertainment value, but it has a Deakin University health scientist asking if it is casting sugar in the right light.
"There is no doubt that sugar is today's number one dietary demon," said Deakin's Associate Professor Tim Crowe. "While nutrition scientists debate the harms or otherwise of saturated fat, sugar is the one food we unite over we all agree we eat too much of it and it's not good for us.

Obese Children’s Brains More Responsive to Sugar

UCSD. US: A new study led by researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine finds that the brains of obese children literally light up differently when tasting sugar. Published online in International Journal of Obesity, the study does not show a causal relationship between sugar hypersensitivity and overeating but it does support the idea that the growing number of America’s obese youth may have a heightened psychological reward response to food.