Sugar rationing during and after World War II in the United Kingdom helped a group of researchers expand the evidence on how sugar consumption in the early years of life affects health in adulthood. Scientists, relying on a social situation that forced consumption to be reduced or significantly reduced for a certain period, compared the situation of children born during and after these restrictions half a century later.
The results, published this Thursday in the magazine Scienceshow that the former have a lower risk of diabetes and hypertension, respectively 35% and 20%, than the latter. In addition, the onset of these diseases can be delayed between two and four years depending on the situation alone during the first 1,000 days of life from gestation, the period measured by the researchers. The study shows that what happens while babies are in the womb alone can protect them; although the greatest reduction in risk occurs as sugar rationing extends beyond the first six months, when children begin eating solid foods.
By the age of two, many children consume the seven teaspoons of sugar recommended for adults daily, and this amount almost triples by adolescence.
“During rationing, the amount of sugar allowed for everyone – including pregnant women and children – was comparable to current dietary recommendations for some.
The divergence is notable from age 50
The research – developed by economists from universities in the United States and Canada – looked at 60,183 people born between October 1951 and March 1956. They were between 51 and 66 years old when they were interviewed to find out their state of health. health and compare groups. A total of 3,936 participants were diagnosed with diabetes and 19,644 with hypertension. “The risk of disease diagnosis increases with age for everyone, but it increases more quickly among adults who were not exposed to rationing,” details the study. The divergence begins to be noticed around the age of 50 and becomes more pronounced after the age of 60.
“The results seem to indicate that limiting the consumption of simple sugars and its derivatives during childhood could prevent or delay in one way or another the development of chronic health problems,” explains Jesús Francisco García Gavilán, researcher at the CIBERobn of the Carlos III Health Institute in statements to the Science Media Center. The expert considers the research valuable because it confirms previous findings and because its results “support the recommendations of clinical practice dietary guidelines.”
To avoid spurious relationships, the research team found that the 1950s diet was similar between cohorts, with the exception of sugar; and no differences in disease risk due to non-diet-related conditions were observed. Regardless, García Gavilán points out, “the availability of ultra-processed products in those years could be very different from today.”
Childhood, the study points out, is a critical period for developing a taste for sweets, or even an addiction, which can increase consumption throughout life. According to data included in the research, “more than 70% of foods marketed to infants or young children contain added sugars in formulas, foods or drinks” and “by the age of two, many children consume the seven teaspoons daily. sugar recommended for adults, and they almost triple in adolescence.
“Our results contribute to this debate not only by linking sugar to health, but also by highlighting the importance of diet in the first years of life to control the risk of long-term metabolic diseases,” defend the scientists. .
