California Researchers Target Health Issues Related to Added Sugars
California researchers have created a website and are partnering with health departments across the U.S. to spread awareness about the health dangers of added sugar, KQED's "State of Health" reports.
Background on Added Sugars
According to the American Heart Association, U.S. residents consume about 19.5 teaspoons per day of added sugars.
However, AHA recommends that men consume no more than 9 teaspoons per day and that women consume less than 6 teaspoons per day.
Details of Initiative
For the project, called "Sugar Science," researchers from UC-San Francisco, UC-Davis and Emory University analyzed 8,000 studies and research papers and extracted data to show that overconsumption of added sugar can lead to:
- Heart disease;
- Liver disease; and
- Type 2 diabetes.
The initiative's website has resources, such as television commercials, that public health officials can download and customize for their cities. In addition to facts on added sugars, the site includes strategies for reducing sugar consumption. For example, the project recommends that people:
- Read nutrition labels to avoid added sugars, such as dextrose, fructose and lactose; and
- Reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, from which more than one-third of added sugar in diets comes.
Laura Schmidt, the project's lead investigator, said the project is "about translating the information that's locked up in the medical journals and sharing it with the public in ways that are understandable."
Sugar Science already has partnered with health departments, from San Francisco to New York City (Aliferis, "State of Health," KQED, 11/10).
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