Just in time for HalloweenA new study shows that giving babies sugar when they are really young – even in the womb – increases their risk of developing type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure later in life.
Researchers determined Limiting sugar exposure in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life – from conception to age 2 – reduces the risk of diabetes by about 35% and high blood pressure by 20% and delayed onset of disease For four years and two years respectively.
“In utero sugar intake alone was protective, but the greatest reduction in risk occurred when rationing lasted beyond 6 months of age,” the international team of researchers wrote Thursday. journal science,
The study authors used data from post-World War II sugar rationing in the UK to compare the health outcomes of adults who conceived shortly before and after the decade-long rationing ended in 1953.
The study included 60,183 participants born between October 1951 and March 1956 – they were surveyed in their 50s or 60s.
People born between October 1951 and June 1954 were considered sugar-rationers and those born in July 1954 or later were considered non-rationers.
About 4,000 participants were diagnosed with diabetes and about 20,000 were diagnosed with hypertension during the study period.
“The risk of being diagnosed with the disease increases with age for everyone, but it increases most rapidly in adults who have little or no exposure to rationing,” the researchers said. “Disease risk began to differ when participants were in their mid-50s, and the largest differences were seen after age 60.”
Eating too much sugar can damage cells, causing… chronic inflammationWhich has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, liver disease and cancer.
Sugar also promotes obesity – Widespread public health crisis in the US – and tooth decay,
Dietary Guidelines for Americans Recommend not allowing children under 2 to consume foods or beverages with added sugars.
Still, the study authors found that more than 70% Formula, foods, or beverages marketed for infants or young children may contain added sugars.
By age 2, the researchers said, many children consume The recommended daily sugar intake for adults is about seven teaspoons, with this amount almost tripling by their teens.
“Early life sugar intake may affect health by increasing lifelong preference for sweetness,” the study authors wrote. “Infancy and childhood are particularly important periods for developing a taste for (or even addiction to) sweets that can lead to increased sugar consumption throughout life.”
One of the limitations of the new study is that researchers don’t know exactly how much sugar the participants consumed during childhood.
“Further research is needed to understand the optimal levels of added sugar consumption during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and after the introduction of solids, as well as the ways they impact long-term health,” the study authors wrote.
