Gender and body weight status differences in the consumption frequency, choice and sugar intake of ready-to-drink sugar-sweetened beverages

• Published in: British food journal (1966) 2020-10, Vol.122 (10), p.3039-3048
• Main Authors: Tan, Seok Tyug, Abdullah Zaini, Nur Ainaa' Najihah, Tan, Seok Shin, Tan, Chin Xuan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescents; Age; Arthritis; Beverages; Body mass index; Body weight; Cardiovascular diseases; Chi-square test; Children & youth; Chronology; Data collection; Dental caries; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetes mellitus (non-insulin dependent); Fruit juices; Gender; Metabolic disorders; Metabolic syndrome; Milk; Obesity; Overweight; Questionnaires; Schools; Sociodemographics; Software; Standard scores; Sugar; Teenagers
• ISSN: 0007-070X; 1758-4108
• DOI: 10.1108/BFJ-03-2020-0243

PurposeFrequent consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) not only contribute to the incidence of dental caries but also a substantial risk for metabolic syndrome, obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and arthritis. Therefore, this study aims to compare the ready-to-drink SSB (RTD-SSB) consumption frequency, choice and sugar intake across gender and body weight status.Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study involved 126 adolescents from two primary schools in Shah Alam, Selangor. Adolescents aged between 9-11 years old were enrolled using convenience sampling method. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to assess socio-demographic and RTD-SSB consumption of the adolescents. The RTD-SSB consumption was assessed with 2-day 24-hour dietary recalls (single weekend and single weekday recalls), whereas body weight and height were assessed using TANITA weighing scale and stadiometer, respectively. Data were analysed using SPSS version 26.0, while BMI-for-age (BAZ) z-score was determined using the World Health Organization (WHO) AnthroPlus software version 1.0.4.FindingsThe mean age of 126 adolescents was 10.82 ± 0.93 years old. The frequency of SSB consumption was 1.77 ± 1.25 times/day, whereas the average daily sugar intake was 6.3 teaspoons (26.61 ± 22.18 g) from RTD-SSBs. Flavoured milk emerged as the most frequent consumed beverage among adolescents, regardless of gender and weight status. No association was observed between the RTD-SSB consumption frequency and weight status (χ2 = 0.953, p > 0.05) as well as sugar intake and weight status (χ2 = 1.202, p > 0.05). Emerging findings demonstrated that the RTD-SSB consumption frequency, choice and sugar intake were similar across gender and weight status.Originality/valueThis was the first study that compares RTD-SSB consumption frequency, choice and sugar intake across gender and different body weight status.