Total, Free, and Added Sugar Consumption and Adherence to Guidelines: The Dutch National Food Consumption Survey 2007-2010

• Published in: Nutrients Vol. 8; no. 2; p. 70
• Main Authors: Sluik, Diewertje, van Lee, Linde, Engelen, Anouk I, Feskens, Edith J M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 28.01.2016; MDPI
• Subjects: added sugars; Adolescent; Adult; Adults; Afdeling Humane voeding; Age Factors; Aged; Beverages; Chair Nutrition and Disease; Chair Nutrition and Health over the Lifecourse; Child; Children; Composition; Confectionery; Cookies; Diet; diet quality; Diet Surveys; Dietary fiber; Dietary intake; Dietary Sucrose - administration & dosage; Feeding Behavior; Female; Food; Food composition; Food consumption; Food production; Food sources; free sugars; Global Nutrition; Guidelines; HNE Nutrition and Disease; HNE Nutrition and Health over the Lifecourse; HNE Voeding en Gezondheid in de Levenscyclus; HNE Voeding en Ziekte; Human Nutrition; Human Nutrition & Health; Human Nutrition (HNE); Humane Voeding; Humane Voeding & Gezondheid; Humans; Male; Mental Recall; Middle Aged; Netherlands; Nutrition and Disease; Nutrition Policy; Product information; Sex Factors; Sugar; sugars; survey; Sweetening Agents - administration & dosage; VLAG; Voeding en Ziekte; Wereldvoeding; Young Adult; guidelines; survey; sugars; added sugars; free sugars; diet quality
• DOI: 10.3390/nu8020070
• ISSN: 2072-6643

A high sugar intake is a subject of scientific debate due to the suggested health implications and recent free sugar recommendations by the WHO. The objective was to complete a food composition table for added and free sugars, to estimate the intake of total sugars, free sugars, and added sugars, adherence to sugar guidelines and overall diet quality in Dutch children and adults. In all, 3817 men and women (7-69 years) from the Dutch National Food Consumption Survey 2007-2010 were studied. Added and free sugar content of products was assigned by food composition tables and using labelling and product information. Diet was assessed with two 24-h recalls. Diet quality was studied in adults with the Dutch Healthy Diet-index. Total sugar intake was 22% Total Energy (%TE), free sugars intake 14 %TE, and added sugar intake 12 %TE. Sugar consumption was higher in children than adults. Main food sources of sugars were sweets and candy, non-alcoholic beverages, dairy, and cake and cookies. Prevalence free sugar intake <10 %TE was 5% in boys and girls (7-18 years), 29% in women, and 33% in men. Overall diet quality was similar comparing adults adherent and non-adherent to the sugar guidelines, although adherent adults had a higher intake of dietary fiber and vegetables. Adherence to the WHO free sugar guidelines of <5 %TE and <10 %TE was generally low in the Netherlands, particularly in children. Adherence to the added and free sugar guidelines was not strongly associated with higher diet quality in adults.