A study published in Nature Communications by the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy shows that geographical location has a strong impact on the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, with global consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages increasing by 16% over 28 years. Consumption rates vary widely between regions, with Latin America and the Caribbean having the highest intakes. The study highlights the public health risks of sugary drinks and the socioeconomic factors that influence consumption, calling for targeted policies to reduce intake.

Researchers at Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy said the dietary survey data showed regional and age differences.

Researchers at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy report in a new study published Oct. 3 in the journal Nature Communications that the decision to drink sugary drinks is largely influenced by where you live. Analysis of the Global Dietary Database from 1990, 2005 and 2018 found that overall global consumption of sweetened beverages increased by nearly 16% during the 28-year period studied, but intakes varied widely across regions.

Sugary drinks are a public health concern because they are widely associated with obesity and cardiometabolic diseases, which are among the leading causes of death and years lost to disability worldwide. Guidelines in many countries recommend limiting added sugars to less than 5% to 10% of daily calories, and since soda adds no nutritional value, some countries tax soda consumption to help their residents achieve this goal.

Research insights and demographic changes

The study is the latest overview of how adults in 185 countries consume sugary drinks: soft drinks, energy drinks, juices, punches, lemonades and juices with more than 50 calories per 8-ounce serving. Intake varies widely among regions of the world. For example, in 2018, the average person consumed 2.7 sugary drinks per week, but this ranged from 0.7 servings per week in South Asia to 7.8 servings per week in Latin America and the Caribbean.

It was observed that global intake was higher among men and women, and higher among young and older adults, but education and rural/urban residents had higher intakes affected more by region of origin. In sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Latin America/Caribbean, adults with higher levels of education are more likely to drink sugary drinks relative to adults with less education, while the opposite is true in the Middle East/North Africa. Overall, the highest intakes of sugary drinks in the world are among urban, highly educated adults in sub-Saharan Africa (12.4 servings per week) and Latin America/Caribbean (8.5 servings per week).

National consumption patterns and socioeconomic factors

At the national level, the countries where people consumed the most servings of sugary drinks per week included Mexico (8.9 servings), Ethiopia (7.1 servings), the United States (4.9 servings) and Nigeria (4.9 servings), while India, China and Bangladesh (0.2 servings each).

"We were struck by the large differences across regions of the world in 2018; Latin America/Caribbean had the largest intake of all time points, although overall it declined over time; and Sub-Saharan Africa had the largest increase in intake of all time points," said first author Laura Lara-Castor, a doctoral candidate in nutritional epidemiology and data science at the Friedman School. "These results suggest more work needs to be done, particularly around successful interventions such as marketing regulations, food labeling and soda taxes."

The Global Dietary Database, which compiles hundreds of surveys on people's diets, also contains information showing the relationship between sugary drinks and socioeconomic status. Between 1990 and 2018, sub-Saharan Africa experienced the largest increase in consumption (+2.99; +81.9%). Intakes in high-income countries first increased and then decreased, and in Latin America/Caribbean, intakes first decreased and then increased, returning to levels close to 1990 by 2018. The rest of the world has seen more modest, steady increases in intake over time. Similar patterns were observed by gender, age, education and region of residence.

Root causes and future research

"While this study did not identify the cause of these trends, the researchers hypothesized that these changes may be related to the effectiveness of targeted marketing strategies by the soda and food industries, the association of Western diets with high status, and access to water," Lara-Cast said. "Soda can travel the farthest places, and in countries with fewer clean water sources, these beverages may be the only drinkable beverages available."

"Despite efforts to reduce the appeal of sugar-sweetened beverages, sugar-sweetened beverage intake has increased over the past few decades," said cardiologist Dariush Mozaffarian, professor of nutrition at the Friedman School. "Some populations are particularly vulnerable, and our findings provide evidence to inform national and more targeted policies to reduce beverage intake globally."

The researchers said more work is needed to assess sugary drink intake among children and adolescents, measure the global impact of soda taxes and better understand differences among subpopulations across countries. The team also hopes to explore how other sweetened beverages such as milk, coffee and tea affect consumption habits.

References: Laura Lara-Castor, Renata Micha, Frederick Cudhea, Victoria Miller, Peilin Shi, Jianyi Zhang, Julia R. Sharib, Jo "Sugar-sweetened beverage intake among adults in 185 countries, 1990 to 2018" by Sh Erndt-Marino, Sean B. Cash, Dariush Mozaffarian, and the Global Dietary Database, 3 October 2023, Nature Communications.

DOI:10.1038/s41467-023-41269-8

Compiled from: ScitechDaily