Added sugar intake is highest in Mumbai, Ahmedabad: ICMR study

Women consume more sugar than men, says first such survey of seven Indian metros

Representational image. File

The mean intake of added sugar among metro cities of India, measured in grams per day, is the highest in Mumbai and the least in Hyderabad, according to a survey undertaken by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)-National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Hyderabad, and sponsored by the International Life Sciences Institute-India (ILSI-India).

The joint initiative by ICMR-INN and ILSI India is the first of its kind to provide information on added sugar consumption of city-dwellers in seven major metro cities of India.

Average is lower

The findings released on Sunday revealed that the average daily intake of added sugar in all metro cities was 19.5 gm/day, which is lower than the ICMR recommended level of 30 gm/day.

Professor P. K. Seth, Chairman, ILSA-India said: “The survey shows that the population of Mumbai and Ahmedabad, with their average intake level of added sugar at 26.3 gm/day and 25.9 gm/day respectively, have a much higher intake than their counterparts in Delhi (23.2 gm/day), Bengaluru (19.3 grams day), Kolkata (17.1 grams per day) and Chennai (16.1 grams per day)."

At a time when the country is facing malnutrition on account of over- and under-nutrition, along with micro-nutrient malnutrition, the study is of considerable importance in helping prevent prevent non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are engaging the government’s attention significantly.

The National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB) collated dietary data from 16 major States during 2015-16, and re-coded it recipe-wise and metro city-wise to arrive at the conclusions.

Disparity seen

The other significant finding of the study is that, in general, the average intake of sugar was more among women (20.2 gm/day) than that in men (18.7 gm/day).

The same trend is observed in all cities except Ahmedabad, where men and women consume an almost equal quantity of added sugar — with men in Ahmedabad consuming 25.7 gm/day of added sugar, Ahmedabad’s women consume a shade higher at 26 gm/day. The disparity in consumption of added sugar between men and women appears to be more in Mumbai than in other cities. While women in Mumbai consume 28 gm/day of added sugar, the intake of Mumbai’s men is only 24.4 gm/day.

Another important finding of the study relates to the energy provided by added sugar.

For all the States, the average energy intake through added sugar was 5.1%. In Mumbai, the energy through added sugar was found at the highest level (6.6%), followed by Delhi (at 6.1%), Ahmedabad (at 5.9%), Hyderabad (at 5.4%) Bengaluru (at 4.1%), Chennai (at 3.9%) and Kolkata (at 3.5%).

Old take more

The survey also measured the intake of added sugar by age groups. In general, adults and elderly people are consuming slightly more sugar than younger members of the population, it found.

The highest intake of sugar was observed among older adults in the 36-59 years age group (20.5 gm/ day), followed by those over 60 years of age (20.3 gm/day). Adolescents (19.9 gm/day), and younger adults in the age group of 18-35 years, are consuming 19.4 gm/day, almost the same as that of adolescents. Schoolchildren and pre-school children are consuming 17.6 gm/day and 15.6 gm/day of added sugar, respectively.

The study also measured sugar consumption by community, level of literacy, occupation, activity status, and by the diet intake.