Americans’ Obsession With Sugar Starts in Infancy

HealthDay Reporter

Eating foods with added sugar can influence a child’s food choices later in life. And added sugar has been linked with obesity, asthma, dental cavities and heart disease risk factors such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, the study authors said.

The researchers analyzed data from 800 infants and toddlers between 6 and 23 months old in the 2011-2014 U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

They found that 85 percent of the infants and toddlers consumed added sugar on a given day and that added sugar consumption rose with age.

Just over 60 percent of those ages 6 to 11 months averaged just under 1 teaspoon of added sugar a day. That rose to 98 percent among those babies 12 to 18 months, who averaged 5.5 teaspoons of added sugar a day.

And a whopping 99 percent of babies 19 to 23 months old averaged just over 7 teaspoons of added sugar on a given day, more than the amount in a Snickers candy bar, the study authors said…. more at https://www.webmd.com/diet/obesity/news/20180610/americans-obsession-with-sugar-starts-in-infancy?src=RSS_PUBLIC