This article is about the class of sweet-flavored substances used as food. For common table sugar, seeSucrose. For other uses, seeSugar (disambiguation).
Sugars (clockwise from top-left):white refined, unrefined,brown, unprocessed cane
Sugar is the generic name forsweet-tasting, solublecarbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also calledmonosaccharides, includeglucose,fructose, andgalactose. Compound sugars, also calleddisaccharides or double sugars, are molecules made of twobonded monosaccharides; common examples aresucrose (glucose + fructose),lactose (glucose + galactose), andmaltose (two molecules of glucose).White sugar is a refined form of sucrose. In the body, compound sugars arehydrolysed into simple sugars.
Longer chains of monosaccharides (>2) are not regarded as sugars and are calledoligosaccharides orpolysaccharides.Starch is a glucose polymer found in plants, the most abundant source of energy inhuman food. Some other chemical substances, such asethylene glycol,glycerol andsugar alcohols, may have a sweet taste but are not classified as sugar.
Sugars are found in the tissues of most plants.Honey and fruits are abundant natural sources of simple sugars. Sucrose is especially concentrated insugarcane andsugar beet, making them ideal for efficient commercialextraction to make refined sugar. In 2016, the combined world production of those two crops was about two billiontonnes. Maltose may be produced bymalting grain. Lactose is the only sugar that cannot be extracted from plants. It can only be found in milk, including human breast milk, and in somedairy products. A cheap source of sugar iscorn syrup, industrially produced by convertingcorn starch into sugars, such as maltose, fructose and glucose.
Sucrose is used in prepared foods (e.g., cookies and cakes), is sometimesadded to commercially availableultra-processed food and beverages, and is sometimes used as a sweetener for foods (e.g., toast and cereal) and beverages (e.g., coffee and tea). The average person consumes about 24 kilograms (53 pounds) of sugar each year. North and South Americans consume up to 50 kg (110 lb), and Africans consume under 20 kg (44 lb).[1]
Asfree sugar consumption grew in the latter part of the 20th century, researchers began to examine whether a diet high in free sugar, especially refined sugar, was damaging tohuman health. In 2015, theWorld Health Organization strongly recommended that adults and children reduce their intake of free sugars to less than 10% of their totalenergy intake and encouraged a reduction to below 5%.[2] In general, high sugar consumption damages human health more than it provides nutritional benefit and is associated with a risk of cardiometabolic and other health detriments.[3]
Theetymology ofsugar reflects the commodity's spread. FromSanskritśarkarā, meaning "ground or candied sugar", camePersianshakar and Arabicsukkar. The Arabic word was borrowed in Medieval Latin assuccarum, whence came the 12th centuryFrenchsucre and the Englishsugar. Sugar was introduced into Europe by the Arabs in Sicily and Spain.[4]
The English wordjaggery, a coarsebrown sugar made fromdate palm sap orsugarcane juice, has a similar etymological origin: Portuguesejágara from the Malayalamcakkarā, which is from the Sanskritśarkarā.[5]
Sugar has been produced in theIndian subcontinent[6] for thousands of years. Sugarcane cultivation spread from there into China via theKhyber Pass and caravan routes.[7] It was not plentiful or cheap in early times, and in most parts of the world,honey was more often used for sweetening.[8] Originally, people chewed raw sugarcane to extract its sweetness. Even after refined sugarcane became more widely available during the European colonial era,[9]palm sugar was preferred inJava and other sugar producing parts of southeast Asia, and along withcoconut sugar, is still used locally to make desserts today.[10][11]
Sugarcane is native of tropical areas such as the Indian subcontinent (South Asia) and Southeast Asia.[6][12] Different species seem to have originated from different locations;Saccharum barberi originated in India, andS. edule andS. officinarum came fromNew Guinea.[12][13] One of the earliest historical references to sugarcane is in Chinese manuscripts dating to the 8th century BCE, which state that the use of sugarcane originated in India.[14]
In the tradition of Indian medicine (āyurveda), sugarcane is known by the nameIkṣu, and sugarcane juice is known asPhāṇita. Its varieties, synonyms and characteristics are defined innighaṇṭus such as the Bhāvaprakāśa (1.6.23, group of sugarcanes).[15]
Sugar remained relatively unimportant until around 350 AD when the Indians discovered methods of turningsugarcane juice into granulated crystals that were easier to store and transport. It was then considered as 'sweet spice' and Indian traders started trading sugar outside India.[16] The Greek physicianPedanius Dioscorides attested to the method in his 1st century CE medical treatiseDe Materia Medica:
There is a kind of coalesced honey called sakcharon [i.e. sugar] found in reeds in India andEudaimon Arabia similar in consistency to salt and brittle enough to be broken between the teeth like salt,
— Pedanius Dioscorides, Materia Medica, Book II[17][18]
In the local Indian language, these crystals were calledkhanda (Devanagari: खण्ड,Khaṇḍa), which is the source of the wordcandy.[19] Indian sailors, who carriedclarified butter and sugar as supplies, introduced knowledge of sugar along the varioustrade routes they travelled.[20] Traveling Buddhist monks took sugarcrystallization methods to China.[21] During the reign ofHarsha (r. 606–647) inNorth India, Indian envoys inTang China taught methods of cultivating sugarcane afterEmperor Taizong of Tang (r. 626–649) made known his interest in sugar. China established its first sugarcane plantations in the seventh century.[22] Chinese documents confirm at least two missions to India, initiated in 647 CE, to obtain technology for sugar refining.[23]
Two elaborate sugartriomfi of goddesses for a dinner given by theEarl of Castlemaine, British ambassador in Rome, 1687
Nearchus, admiral ofAlexander the Great, knew of sugar during the year 325 BC because of his participation inthe campaign of India led by Alexander (Arrian,Anabasis).[24][25] In addition to the Greek physicianPedanius Dioscorides, the RomanPliny the Elder also described sugar in his 1st century CENatural History: "Sugar is made in Arabia as well, but Indian sugar is better. It is a kind of honey found in cane, white as gum, and it crunches between the teeth. It comes in lumps the size of a hazelnut. Sugar is used only for medical purposes."[26]Crusaders brought sugar back to Europe after their campaigns in theHoly Land, where they encountered caravans carrying "sweet salt". Early in the 12th century, theRepublic of Venice acquired some villages nearTyre and set up estates to produce sugar for export to Europe. It supplemented the use of honey, which had previously been the only available sweetener.[27] Crusade chroniclerWilliam of Tyre, writing in the late 12th century, described sugar as "very necessary for the use and health of mankind".[28] In the 15th century,Venice was the chief sugar refining and distribution center in Europe.[14]
There was a drastic change in the mid-15th century, whenMadeira and theCanary Islands were settled from Europe and sugar introduced there.[29][30] After this an "all-consuming passion for sugar ... swept through society" as it became far more easily available, though initially still very expensive.[31] By 1492, Madeira was producing over 1,400,000 kilograms (3,000,000 lb) of sugar annually.[32]Genoa, one of the centers of distribution, became known for candied fruit, while Venice specialized in pastries, sweets (candies), andsugar sculptures. Sugar was considered to have "valuable medicinal properties" as a "warm" food under prevailing categories, being "helpful to the stomach, to cure cold diseases, and sooth lung complaints".[33]
A feast given inTours in 1457 byGaston de Foix, which is "probably the best and most complete account we have of a late medieval banquet" includes the first mention of sugar sculptures, as the final food brought in was "a heraldic menagerie sculpted in sugar: lions, stags, monkeys ... each holding in paw or beak the arms of theHungarian king".[34] Other recorded grand feasts in the decades following included similar pieces.[35] Originally the sculptures seem to have been eaten in the meal, but later they become merely table decorations, the most elaborate calledtrionfi. Several significant sculptors are known to have produced them; in some cases their preliminary drawings survive. Early ones were in brown sugar, partlycast in molds, with the final touches carved. They continued to be used until at least the Coronation Banquet forEdward VII of the United Kingdom in 1903; among other sculptures every guest was given a sugar crown to take away.[36]
In August 1492,Christopher Columbus collected sugar cane samples inLa Gomera in theCanary Islands, and introduced it to theNew World.[37] The cuttings were planted and the first sugar-cane harvest inHispaniola took place in 1501. Many sugar mills had been constructed inCuba andJamaica by the 1520s.[38] The Portuguese took sugar cane to Brazil. By 1540, there were 800 cane-sugar mills inSanta Catarina Island and another 2,000 on the north coast of Brazil,Demarara, andSurinam. It took until 1600 for Brazilian sugar production to exceed that ofSão Tomé, which was the main center of sugar production in sixteenth century.[30]
Sugar was a luxury in Europe until the early 19th century, when it became more widely available, due to the rise ofbeet sugar inPrussia, and later inFrance underNapoleon.[39] Beet sugar was a German invention, since, in 1747,Andreas Sigismund Marggraf announced the discovery of sugar in beets and devised a method using alcohol to extract it.[40] Marggraf's student,Franz Karl Achard, devised an economical industrial method to extract the sugar in its pure form in the late 18th century.[41][42] Achard first produced beet sugar in 1783 inKaulsdorf, and in 1801, the world's first beet sugar production facility was established inCunern,Silesia (then part of Prussia, nowPoland).[43] The works of Marggraf and Achard were the starting point for the sugar industry in Europe,[44] and for the modern sugar industry in general, since sugar was no longer a luxury product and a product almost only produced in warmer climates.[45]
Sugar became highly popular and by the 19th century, was found in every household. This evolution of taste and demand for sugar as an essential food ingredient resulted in major economic and social changes.[46] Demand drove, in part, the colonization of tropical islands and areas where labor-intensive sugarcane plantations and sugar manufacturing facilities could be successful.[46] World consumption increased more than 100 times from 1850 to 2000, led by Britain, where it increased from about 2 pounds per head per year in 1650 to 90 pounds by the early 20th century. In the late 18th century Britain consumed about half the sugar which reached Europe.[47]
After slavery wasabolished, the demand for workers in European colonies in the Caribbean was filled byindentured laborers from theIndian subcontinent.[48][49][50] Millions of enslaved or indentured laborers were brought to various European colonies in the Americas, Africa and Asia (as a result of demand in Europe for among other commodities, sugar), influencing the ethnic mixture of numerous nations around the globe.[51][52][53]
Sugar also led to some industrialization of areas where sugar cane was grown. For example, in the 1790s Lieutenant J. Paterson, of theBengal Presidency promoted to theBritish parliament the idea that sugar cane could grow inBritish India, where it had started, with many advantages and at less expense than in theWest Indies. As a result, sugar factories were established inBihar in eastern India.[54][55] During theNapoleonic Wars, sugar-beet production increased in continental Europe because of the difficulty of importing sugar when shipping was subject toblockade. By 1880 the sugar beet was the main source of sugar in Europe. It was also cultivated inLincolnshire and other parts of England, although the United Kingdom continued to import the main part of its sugar from its colonies.[56]
Until the late nineteenth century, sugar was purchased inloaves, which had to be cut using implements calledsugar nips.[57] In later years, granulated sugar was more usually sold in bags.Sugar cubes were produced in the nineteenth century. The first inventor of a process to produce sugar in cube form wasJakob Christof Rad, director of a sugar refinery inDačice. In 1841, he produced the first sugar cube in the world.[58] He began sugar-cube production after being granted a five-year patent for the process on 23 January 1843.Henry Tate ofTate & Lyle was another early manufacturer of sugar cubes at his refineries inLiverpool and London. Tate purchased a patent for sugar-cube manufacture from GermanEugen Langen, who in 1872 had invented a different method of processing of sugar cubes.[59]
Scientifically,sugar loosely refers to a number ofcarbohydrates, such asmonosaccharides,disaccharides, oroligosaccharides. Monosaccharides are also called "simple sugars", the most important being glucose. Most monosaccharides have a formula that conforms toC nH 2nO n with n between 3 and 7 (deoxyribose being an exception).Glucose has themolecular formulaC 6H 12O 6. The names of typical sugars end with -ose, as in "glucose" and "fructose". Sometimes such words may also refer to any types ofcarbohydrates soluble in water. Theacyclic mono- and disaccharides contain eitheraldehyde groups orketone groups. Thesecarbon-oxygen double bonds (C=O) are the reactive centers. Allsaccharides with more than one ring in their structure result from two or more monosaccharides joined byglycosidic bonds with the resultant loss of a molecule of water (H 2O) per bond.[67]
Monosaccharides in a closed-chain form can form glycosidic bonds with other monosaccharides, creating disaccharides (such assucrose) andpolysaccharides (such asstarch orcellulose).Enzymes must hydrolyze or otherwise break these glycosidic bonds before such compounds becomemetabolized. After digestion and absorption the principal monosaccharides present in the blood and internal tissues include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Manypentoses andhexoses can formring structures. In these closed-chain forms, the aldehyde or ketone group remains non-free, so many of the reactions typical of these groups cannot occur. Glucose in solution exists mostly in the ring form atequilibrium, with less than 0.1% of the molecules in the open-chain form.[67]
Biopolymers of sugars are common in nature. Through photosynthesis, plants produceglyceraldehyde-3-phosphate (G3P), a phosphated 3-carbon sugar that is used by the cell to make monosaccharides such as glucose (C 6H 12O 6) or (as in cane and beet) sucrose (C 12H 22O 11). Monosaccharides may be further converted intostructural polysaccharides such ascellulose andpectin forcell wall construction or into energy reserves in the form ofstorage polysaccharides such as starch orinulin. Starch, consisting of two different polymers of glucose, is a readily degradable form of chemicalenergy stored bycells, and can be converted to other types of energy.[67] Another polymer of glucose is cellulose, which is a linear chain composed of several hundred or thousand glucose units. It is used by plants as a structural component in their cell walls. Humans can digest cellulose only to a very limited extent, thoughruminants can do so with the help ofsymbiotic bacteria in their gut.[68]DNA andRNA are built up of the monosaccharidesdeoxyribose andribose, respectively. Deoxyribose has the formulaC 5H 10O 4 and ribose the formulaC 5H 10O 5.[69]
Magnification of grains of refinedsucrose, the most commonfree sugar
Because sugars burn easily when exposed to flame, the handling of sugars risksdust explosion. The risk of explosion is higher when the sugar has been milled to superfine texture, such as for use inchewing gum.[70] The2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion, which killed 14 people and injured 36, and destroyed most of the refinery, was caused by the ignition of sugar dust.[71]
In its culinary use, exposing sugar to heat causescaramelization. As the process occurs,volatile chemicals such asdiacetyl are released, producing the characteristiccaramel flavor.[72]
Fructose, galactose, and glucose are all simple sugars, monosaccharides, with the general formula C6H12O6. They have five hydroxyl groups (−OH) and a carbonyl group (C=O) and are cyclic when dissolved in water. They each exist as severalisomers with dextro- and laevo-rotatory forms that cause polarized light to diverge to the right or the left.[73]
Fructose, or fruit sugar, occurs naturally in fruits, some root vegetables, cane sugar and honey and is the sweetest of the sugars. It is one of the components of sucrose or table sugar. It is used as ahigh-fructose syrup, which is manufactured from hydrolyzed corn starch that has been processed to yieldcorn syrup, with enzymes then added to convert part of the glucose into fructose.[74]
Galactose generally does not occur in the free state but is a constituent with glucose of the disaccharidelactose or milk sugar. It is less sweet than glucose. It is a component of the antigens found on the surface ofred blood cells that determineblood groups.[75]
Glucose occurs naturally in fruits and plant juices and is the primary product ofphotosynthesis.Starch is converted into glucose during digestion, and glucose is the form of sugar that is transported around the bodies of animals in the bloodstream. Although in principle there are twoenantiomers of glucose (mirror images one of the other), naturally occurring glucose is D-glucose. This is also calleddextrose, orgrape sugar because drying grape juice produces crystals of dextrose that can besieved from the other components.[76] Glucose syrup is a liquid form of glucose that is widely used in the manufacture of foodstuffs. It can be manufactured from starch byenzymatic hydrolysis.[77] For example,corn syrup, which is produced commercially by breaking downmaize starch, is one common source of purified dextrose.[78] However, dextrose is naturally present in many unprocessed,whole foods, includinghoney and fruits such as grapes.[79]
Lactose, maltose, and sucrose are all compound sugars, disaccharides, with the general formulaC12H22O11. They are formed by the combination of two monosaccharide molecules with the exclusion of a molecule of water.[73]
Lactose is the naturally occurring sugar found in milk. A molecule of lactose is formed by the combination of a molecule of galactose with a molecule of glucose. It is broken down when consumed into its constituent parts by the enzymelactase during digestion. Children have this enzyme but some adults no longer form it and they are unable to digest lactose.[80]
Maltose is formed during the germination of certain grains, the most notable beingbarley, which is converted intomalt, the source of the sugar's name. A molecule of maltose is formed by the combination of two molecules of glucose. It is less sweet than glucose, fructose or sucrose.[73] It is formed in the body during the digestion of starch by the enzymeamylase and is itself broken down during digestion by the enzymemaltase.[81]
Sucrose is found in the stems of sugarcane and roots of sugar beet. It also occurs naturally alongside fructose and glucose in other plants, in particular fruits and some roots such as carrots. The different proportions of sugars found in these foods determines the range of sweetness experienced when eating them.[73] A molecule of sucrose is formed by the combination of a molecule of glucose with a molecule of fructose. After being eaten, sucrose is split into its constituent parts during digestion by a number of enzymes known assucrases.[82]
^A The carbohydrate figure is calculated in the USDA database and does not always correspond to the sum of the sugars, the starch, and the dietary fiber.[why?]
^B The fructose to fructose plus glucose ratio is calculated by including the fructose and glucose coming from the sucrose.
Due to rising demand, sugar production in general increased some 14% over the period 2009 to 2018.[84] The largest importers were China,Indonesia, and the United States.[84]
In 2022–2023 world production of sugar was 186 million tonnes, and in 2023–2024 an estimated 194 million tonnes — a surplus of 5 million tonnes, according toRagus.[85]
Sugar cane accounted for around 21% of the global crop production over the 2000–2021 period. The Americas was the leading region in the production of sugar cane (52% of the world total).[87]Global production ofsugarcane in 2022 was 1.9 billion tonnes, with Brazil producing 38% of the world total and India 23% (table).
Sugarcane is any of several species, or their hybrids, of giant grasses in the genusSaccharum in the familyPoaceae. They have been cultivated in tropical climates in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia over centuries for the sucrose found in their stems.[6]
Sugar cane requires a frost-free climate with sufficient rainfall during the growing season to make full use of the plant's substantial growth potential. The crop is harvested mechanically or by hand, chopped into lengths and conveyed rapidly to theprocessing plant (commonly known as asugar mill) where it is either milled and the juice extracted with water or extracted by diffusion.[89] The juice is clarified withlime and heated to destroyenzymes. The resulting thin syrup is concentrated in a series of evaporators, after which further water is removed. The resultingsupersaturated solution is seeded with sugar crystals, facilitating crystal formation and drying.[89]Molasses is a by-product of the process and the fiber from the stems, known asbagasse,[89] is burned to provide energy for the sugar extraction process. The crystals of raw sugar have a sticky brown coating and either can be used as they are, can be bleached bysulfur dioxide, or can be treated in acarbonatation process to produce a whiter product.[89] About 2,500 litres (660 US gal) of irrigation water is needed for every one kilogram (2.2 pounds) of sugar produced.[90]
In 2022, global production ofsugar beets was 260 milliontonnes, led by Russia with 18.8% of the world total (table).
Sugar beet became a major source of sugar in the 19th century when methods for extracting the sugar became available. It is abiennial plant,[91] acultivated variety ofBeta vulgaris in thefamilyAmaranthaceae, the tuberous root of which contains a high proportion of sucrose. It is cultivated as a root crop in temperate regions with adequate rainfall and requires a fertile soil. The crop is harvested mechanically in the autumn and the crown of leaves and excess soil removed. The roots do not deteriorate rapidly and may be left in the field for some weeks before being transported to the processing plant where the crop is washed and sliced, and the sugar extracted by diffusion.[92]Milk of lime is added to the raw juice withcalcium carbonate. After water is evaporated by boiling the syrup under a vacuum, the syrup is cooled and seeded with sugar crystals. Thewhite sugar that crystallizes can be separated in a centrifuge and dried, requiring no further refining.[92]
Refined sugar is made from raw sugar that has undergone arefining process to remove themolasses.[93][94] Raw sugar is sucrose which is extracted from sugarcane orsugar beet. While raw sugar can be consumed, the refining process removes unwanted tastes and results in refined sugar or white sugar.[95][96]
The sugar may be transported in bulk to the country where it will be used and the refining process often takes place there. The first stage is known as affination and involves immersing the sugar crystals in a concentrated syrup that softens and removes the sticky brown coating without dissolving them. The crystals are then separated from the liquor and dissolved in water. The resulting syrup is treated either by acarbonatation or by a phosphatation process. Both involve the precipitation of a fine solid in the syrup and when this is filtered out, many of the impurities are removed at the same time. Removal of color is achieved by using either a granularactivated carbon or anion-exchange resin. The sugar syrup is concentrated by boiling and then cooled and seeded with sugar crystals, causing the sugar to crystallize out. The liquor is spun off in a centrifuge and the white crystals are dried in hot air and ready to be packaged or used. The surplus liquor is made into refiners' molasses.[97]
Refined sugar is widely used for industrial needs for higher quality. Refined sugar is purer (ICUMSA below 300) than raw sugar (ICUMSA over 1,500).[99] The level of purity associated with the colors of sugar, expressed by standard numberICUMSA, the smaller ICUMSA numbers indicate the higher purity of sugar.[99]
Coarse-grain sugar, also known as sanding sugar, composed of reflective crystals with grain size of about 1 to 3 mm, similar tokitchen salt. Used atop baked products and candies, it will not dissolve when subjected to heat and moisture.[100]
Granulated sugar (about 0.6 mm crystals), also known as table sugar or regular sugar, is used at the table, to sprinkle on foods and to sweeten hot drinks (coffee and tea), and in home baking to add sweetness and texture to baked products (cookies and cakes) and desserts (pudding and ice cream). It is also used as a preservative to prevent micro-organisms from growing and perishable food from spoiling, as in candied fruits, jams, andmarmalades.[101]
Milled sugars such aspowdered sugar (icing sugar) are ground to a fine powder. They are used for dusting foods and in baking and confectionery.[102][100]
Screened sugars such ascaster sugar are crystalline products separated according to the size of the grains. They are used for decorative table sugars, for blending in dry mixes and in baking and confectionery.[102]
"Lump sugar" redirects here. For the South Korean film, seeLump Sugar.
Sugar cubes
Cube sugar (sometimes called sugar lumps) are white or brown granulated sugars lightly steamed and pressed together in block shape. They are used to sweeten drinks.[102]
Sugarloaf was the usualcone-form in which refined sugar was produced and sold until the late 19th century.[103]
Brown sugar examples: Muscovado (top), dark brown (left), light brown (right)
Brown sugars are granulated sugars, either containing residual molasses, or with the grains deliberately coated with molasses to produce a light- or dark-colored sugar such asmuscovado andturbinado. They are used in baked goods, confectionery, andtoffees.[102] Their darkness is due to the amount of molasses they contain. They may be classified based on their darkness or country of origin.[100]
Syrups are thick, viscous liquids consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water. They are used in the food processing of a wide range of products including beverages,hard candy,ice cream, andjams.[102]
Inverted sugar syrup, commonly known as invert syrup or invert sugar, is a mixture of two simple sugars—glucose and fructose—that is made by heating granulated sugar in water. It is used in breads, cakes, and beverages for adjusting sweetness, aiding moisture retention and avoiding crystallization of sugars.[102]
Molasses andtreacle are obtained by removing sugar from sugarcane or sugar beet juice, as a byproduct of sugar production. They may be blended with the above-mentioned syrups to enhance sweetness and used in a range of baked goods and confectionery including toffees andlicorice.[102]
Inwinemaking,fruit sugars are converted into alcohol by afermentation process. If themust formed by pressing the fruit has a low sugar content, additional sugar may be added to raise the alcohol content of the wine in a process calledchaptalization. In the production of sweet wines, fermentation may be halted before it has run its full course, leaving behind someresidual sugar that gives the wine its sweet taste.[104]
Low-calorie sweeteners are often made ofmaltodextrin with added sweeteners. Maltodextrin is an easily digestible syntheticpolysaccharide consisting of short chains of three or more glucose molecules and is made by the partialhydrolysis of starch.[105] Strictly, maltodextrin is not classified as sugar as it contains more than two glucose molecules, although its structure is similar tomaltose, a molecule composed of two joined glucose molecules.
Polyols aresugar alcohols and are used in chewing gums where a sweet flavor is required that lasts for a prolonged time in the mouth.[106]
Worldwide sugar provides 10% of the daily calories (based on a 2000 kcal diet).[107] In 1750, the average Briton got 72 calories a day from sugar. In 1913, this had risen to 395. In 2015, sugar still provided around 14% of the calories in British diets.[108] According to one source, per capita consumption of sugar in 2016 was highest in the United States, followed by Germany and the Netherlands.[109]
Brown and white granulated sugar are 97% to nearly 100% carbohydrates, respectively, with less than 2% water, and no dietary fiber, protein or fat (table). Brown sugar contains a moderate amount of iron (15% of theReference Daily Intake in a 100 gram amount, see table), but a typical serving of 4 grams (one teaspoon), would provide 15calories and a negligible amount of iron or any other nutrient.[112] Because brown sugar contains 5–10%molasses reintroduced during processing, its value to some consumers is a richer flavor than white sugar.[113]
High sugar consumption damages human health more than it provides nutritional benefit, and in particular is associated with a risk of cardiometabolic health detriments.[3]
Sugar refiners and manufacturers of sugary foods and drinks have sought to influence medical research andpublic health recommendations,[114][115] with substantial and largely clandestine spending documented from the 1960s to 2016.[116][117][118][119] The results of research on the health effects of sugary food and drink differ significantly, depending on whether the researcher has financial ties to the food and drink industry.[120][121][122] A 2013 medical review concluded that "unhealthy commodity industries should have no role in the formation of national or international NCD [non-communicable disease] policy".[123] Similar efforts to steer coverage of sugar-related health information have been made in popular media, including news media and social media.[124][125][126]
A 2003 technical report by theWorld Health Organization (WHO) provides evidence that high intake of sugary drinks (includingfruit juice) increases the risk ofobesity by adding to overallenergy intake.[127] By itself, sugar is doubtfully a factor causing obesity andmetabolic syndrome.[128]Meta-analysis showed that excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages increased the risk of developingtype 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome – including weight gain[129] and obesity – in adults and children.[130][131]
Sugar consumption does not directly cause cancer.[132][133][134]Cancer Council Australia have stated that "there is no evidence that consuming sugar makes cancer cells grow faster or cause cancer".[132] There is an indirect relationship between sugar consumption and obesity-related cancers through increased risk of excess body weight.[134][132][135]
There is a popular misconception that cancer can be treated by reducing sugar and carbohydrate intake to supposedly "starve" tumours. In reality, the health of people with cancer is best served by maintaining ahealthy diet.[138]
Despite some studies suggesting that sugar consumption causes hyperactivity, the quality of evidence is low[139] and it is generally accepted within the scientific community that the notion of children's 'sugar rush' is a myth.[140][141] A 2019meta-analysis found that sugar consumption does not improvemood, but can lower alertness and increase fatigue within an hour of consumption.[142] One review of low-quality studies of children consuming high amounts ofenergy drinks showed association with higher rates of unhealthy behaviors, including smoking and excessive alcohol use, and with hyperactivity andinsomnia, although such effects could not be specifically attributed to sugar over other components of those drinks such ascaffeine.[143]
The WHO,Action on Sugar and the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) consider free sugars an essential dietary factor in the development of dental caries.[144][145][146] WHO have stated that "dental caries can be prevented by avoiding dietary free sugars".[144]
A review of human studies showed that the incidence of caries is lower when sugar intake is less than 10% of total energy consumed.[147]Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption is associated with an increased risk of tooth decay.[148]
The "empty calories" argument states that a diet high inadded (or 'free') sugars will reduce consumption of foods that containessential nutrients.[149] This nutrient displacement occurs if sugar makes up more than 25% of daily energy intake,[150] a proportion associated with poor diet quality and risk of obesity.[151] Displacement may occur at lower levels of consumption.[150]
The WHO recommends that both adults and children reduce the intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake, and suggests a reduction to below 5%. "Free sugars" include monosaccharides and disaccharides added to foods, and sugars found in fruit juice and concentrates, as well as in honey and syrups. According to the WHO, "[t]hese recommendations were based on the totality of available evidence reviewed regarding the relationship between free sugars intake and body weight (low and moderate quality evidence) and dental caries (very low and moderate quality evidence)."[2]
On 20 May 2016, the U.S.Food and Drug Administration announced changes to the Nutrition Facts panel displayed on all foods, to be effective by July 2018. New to the panel is a requirement to list "added sugars" by weight and as a percent of Daily Value (DV). For vitamins and minerals, the intent of DVs is to indicate how much should be consumed. For added sugars, the guidance is that 100% DV should not be exceeded. 100% DV is defined as 50 grams. For a person consuming 2000 calories a day, 50 grams is equal to 200 calories and thus 10% of total calories—the same guidance as the WHO.[152] To put this in context, most 12-US-fluid-ounce (355 ml) cans of soda contain 39 grams of sugar. In the United States, a government survey on food consumption in 2013–2014 reported that, for men and women aged 20 and older, the average total sugar intakes—naturally occurring in foods and added—were, respectively, 125 and 99 g/day.[153]
Various culinary sugars have different densities due to differences in particle size and inclusion of moisture. The "Engineering Resources – Bulk Density Chart" published inPowder and Bulk gives values for bulk densities:[154]
Manufacturers of sugary products, such as soft drinks and candy, and theSugar Research Foundation have been accused of trying to influence consumers and medical associations in the 1960s and 1970s by creating doubt about the potential health hazards of sucrose overconsumption, while promotingsaturated fat as the main dietary risk factor incardiovascular diseases.[116] In 2016, the criticism led to recommendations that dietpolicymakers emphasize the need for high-quality research that accounts for multiplebiomarkers on development of cardiovascular diseases.[116]
Originally, no sugar was white; anthropologistSidney Mintz writes that white likely became understood as the ideal after groups who associated the color white with purity transferred their value to sugar.[155] In India, sugar frequently appears in religious observances. For ritual purity, such sugar cannot be white.[155]
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^Valenzuela MJ, Waterhouse B, Aggarwal VR, Bloor K, Doran T (2021). "Effect of sugar-sweetened beverages on oral health: a systematic review and meta-analysis".Eur J Public Health.31 (1):122–129.doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckaa147.PMID32830237.
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