Focusing On Sugar Consumption Could Be Misleading And Consumers Need To Watch Fat Intake As Well, According To Scientists

14 Jul 2016 --- University of Glasgow researchers say that focusing on sugar in the fight against global obesity could be misleading.

The scientists conclude that health messages on sugar in isolation may mislead consumers on the need to also reduce overall calories. In particular, consumers should also be aware of fat consumption. 

Jill Pell, director of the Institute of Health and Wellbeing and co-lead author, tells NutritionInsight how people need clear messages about overall calorie consumption.

“We need to provide people with clear, simple messages so they can make changes that last their whole lifetime. We need to reduce overall calories by cutting down on both fat, particularly saturated fat, and sugar and increasing our physical activity,” she said.

“It is simple arithmetic: if you eat more calories that you’re using up, you will become overweight or obese.”

The research, which has been published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, analyzed data from 132,479 people from across the UK.

The participants completed dietary questionnaire online as well as having body measurements taken at a clinic. The results showed 66 percent of men and 53 percent of women were classified as overweight or obese. 

Government health department all over the world are focusing on sugar content with various countries planning to introduce a tax on sugary soft drinks.

However, the researchers say that although sugar is currently being targeted in the so-called “sugar tax” initiatives, due to its minimal nutritional benefit and the fact that sugary drinks increase calorie intake without satisfying hunger, the biggest contribution to overall calorie intake in the study was fat.

The strongest predictors of body mass index (BMI) were overall calories and calories from fat. Significantly, compared with normal weight people, overweight/obese people obtained a higher proportion of their calories from fat, but a lower proportion from sugar.

“Unlike other food groups, sugar is not an essential part of our diet. It provides no nutritional benefit other than calories,” adds Jill Pell,

“Also sugary drinks can increase our calorie consumption without making us feel full, so we refer to these as hidden calories.”

“It is difficult for people to make healthy choices when they live in an environment that encourages unhealthy behavior. We need to make healthy food easier to access and cheaper and unhealthy food less accessible and clearly labeled. Then it will be easier for people to adopt a healthy, balanced diet.”

The evidence of this study suggests that if people focus on reducing one type of food they run the risk of simply compensating by eating more of another type, rather than reducing overall calories. This is referred to as the “sugar-fat seesaw”.

“The critical message is that people need to reduce their overall calories. If focusing attention of sugar results in people compensating by eating more crisps then we will fail to combat obesity,” explains Jill Pell.

by Gaynor Selby