Added Sugars

About Added Sugars

Added sugars are sugars and syrups put into foods and drinks during processing or preparation, including table sugar sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, glucose syrup, honey, maple syrup and fruit juice concentrates. The World Health Organization uses the related term free sugars, which also includes sugars naturally present in honey, syrups and fruit juices, and distinguishes them from intrinsic sugars within the structure of whole fruit and vegetables and the lactose in milk. Added sugars supply energy but no essential nutrients. High intake, especially from sugar sweetened beverages, is associated with weight gain, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular risk, and sugars are the principal dietary cause of dental caries. The WHO recommends limiting free sugars to a small share of total energy intake throughout life. Many countries now tax sugar sweetened beverages, including Mexico and the United Kingdom, and nutrition labels in the United States list added sugars separately from total sugars.