Low intake of added sugars in the womb and during the first two years of life can reduce the risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension, in adulthood.
- Adults who did not ingest added sugars during their childhood, more precisely during their first 1,000 days, have up to 35% less risk of developing diabetes and up to 20% less risk of suffering. of hypertension.
- The onset of chronic diseases is delayed by four years and two years, respectively, for those diagnosed later.
- Protection against these pathologies is evident when exposed to sugar restrictions in utero, but restriction after birth increased the benefits, particularly after six months, during dietary diversification.
We know: added sugars, present in different foods, are not good for your health. In a recent study, researchers from McGill University in Montreal (Canada) and California University in Berkeley (United States) examined the impact of exposure to sugar in the first 1,000 days after birth on the risk of diabetes and of hypertension. In order to carry out their research, they took advantage of the quasi-experimental variation of the end of sugar rationing in the United Kingdom. As a reminder, limits on sugar intake, at levels consistent with current dietary recommendations, were introduced in 1942 as part of a wartime program. Rationing ended in September 1953.
Diabetes, hypertension: limiting added sugars in children early in life reduces the risk
The team used old data from the UK Biobank, a database of medical histories and genetic, lifestyle and other disease risk factors, to identify people born around that time and analyze their outcomes health before and after the end of the war. “It’s difficult to find situations where people are randomly exposed to different nutritional environments early in life and follow them for 50 to 60 years. The end of rationing provided us with a novel natural experiment to overcome this.” , declared Tadeja Gracnermain author of the work. Sugar consumption during rationing was about 8 teaspoons (40 grams) per day on average. When rationing ended, sugar consumption skyrocketed to around 16 teaspoons (80 grams) per day.
The results, published in the journal Scienceshowed that having experienced the period of sugar restriction during the first 1,000 days of life reduced the risk of developing diabetes by 35% and hypertension by 20% in adulthood. Low sugar intake early in life delayed “the appearance of chronic diseases at 4 and 2 years old” for people who were later diagnosed with diabetes or hypertension. The scientists also found that exposure to sugar restrictions in utero was enough to reduce risk, but protection against the disease increased after birth, once solid foods were introduced.
“Early sugar is the new tobacco”
According to the team, these results confirm their fears about the long-term health of children who consume excessive amounts of added sugars early in life. “It is not easy to adjust children’s sugar intake, added sugar is ubiquitous, even in foods for babies and young children, and children are bombarded with television advertisements for sugary snacks. (… ) Early sugar is the new tobacco, and we should treat it as such by asking food companies to reformulate baby foods with healthier options, regulating marketing, and taxing sugary foods aimed at children.” , concluded Paul Gertler, co-author of the study.
