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IAE Final Exam S17 Pre-Reading

The Overconsumption of Sugar: Increasing Intakes and Health Risks

In the early 1970s, research by Professor John Yudkin at the University of London’s Queen

Elizabeth College showed that an overconsumption of sugar caused significant health risks such

as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Since then, excessive sugar intake has also been linked to

Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. Research studies (Larsson, Bergkvist, & Wolk,

2006) further claim that high-sugar diets can increase the risk of getting different types of cancer.

With increasing numbers of people around the world suffering from these sugar-related

chronic diseases, consumers, health care professionals, and governmental organizations are

demanding that steps be taken to reduce the amount of sugar in people’s diets. According to the

American Heart Association (n.d.), adult women and men should only consume approximately

25 to 36 grams of sugar per day as shown in Figure 1. World statistics, however, show that

people are consuming much more than this amount. For instance, Nicol (2015) reports that the

average Mexican adult has 104 grams of sugar per day while an American adult consumes 126

grams.

∎ English for Academic Purposes, Stiner G. ∎ IAE – PSE – S17 Final Exam Review

Figure 1. The recommended daily amount of sugar consumption (AHA, 2016).1


To reduce sugar intake, a number of solutions have been proposed. Some corporations in

the food industry have made healthier food products and reduced portion sizes. Other

corporations have researched new ways to process sugar so the crystals become hollow, thereby

reducing the total amount of sugar used. Unfortunately, many of these efforts by food

manufacturers have not helped to improve global health. As another alternative, the World

Health Organization (WHO) proposed a tax on products with high sugar content such as fizzy

drinks. WHO officials believe that taxing beverages with a high sugar content will help to

significantly reduce the number of people with diabetes. With over 19% of their population

being diagnosed with diabetes, one region very interested in the recommended fizzy drink tax is

the United Arab Emirates. Recent estimates for treating diabetes in the Gulf Region was 61.7

billion dirhams in 2014 with health care experts predicting this may increase to 88.2 billion in

2035 (Chaudhary, 2015).

Despite new initiatives and recommendations, trying to reduce sugar intake is quite

challenging. Most consumers are addicted to sugar and both consumer experts and medical

professionals question alternative processing methods as well

as the effectiveness of a tax on sugar. Nevertheless, if a

successful solution is not found to sugar’s overconsumption,

health risks and the medical expenses required to treat them

will only continue to increase and negatively impact global

societies.

References

American Heart Association. (n.d.). Sugar 101. Retrieved from http://www.heart.org/HEART

ORG/HealthyLiving/HealthyEating/Nutrition/Sugar101_UCM_306024_Article.jsp#.WQL

oT8eO5E4

Chaudhary, S. (2015, November 11). Report seeks to tax on sugary, fizzy drinks to fight diabetes. Gulf

News. Retrieved from http://www.gulfnews.com

Larsson, S., Bergkvist, L., & Wolk, A. (2006). Consumption of sugar and sugar sweetened foods and the


(Sullivan, n.d.)

2


risk of pancreatic cancer. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 84, 1171-1176.

Nicol, M. (2015, October 28). Which countries consume the most added sugar? World Economic Forum.

Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/10/which-countries-consume-the-most-

added-sugar/

Dubai Residents Speak about Sugar Consumption and Tax

Sugar is in almost everything that people eat. People’s tastes are now so used to it, that most cannot go for one day without wanting something with sugar. Gulf News asked Dubai residents to share their thoughts on sugar intake and putting a tax on sugar. Here are their responses.

1. Majella Gatdula, 44, call center agent

I’m not aware of how much sugar I consume in a day. I used to drink at least two bottles of fizzy drinks per day. But, I’m not fond of sweets or chocolate.

Sugar tax or not?I agree with it because it will help people to rethink their choices.

2. Mohammad Sameen, 34, sales executive

I start my mornings with Nutella, it can’t be any other way. I’m not a diehard sugar lover, but I don’t really know how much I consume in a day.

Sugar tax or not? I don’t think having a sugar tax will discourage people. They’ll go ahead and eat it anyway.

3. Yaeesh Nairat, 28, broadcast engineer

Unfortunately, I like sweets, especially soft drinks, which I have daily, and energy drinks, which I have at least twice a week. But, consuming them makes it hard to sleep. I work on shifts. So on days when I have to work and I need to keep going, I have an energy drink. But, that keeps me awake at night and I’m sleepy the next day.

Sugar tax or not:

Strongly agree. This could stop people from buying sugary products. If a Dh1 soft drink begins to cost Dh4, I’ll have second thoughts on buying it.


(Gulf News, 2017)

(Gulf News, 2017)

(Gulf News, 2017)

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4. What about you?

How much sugar do you consume per day? What is your opinion on a sugar tax?

Source: Leon, J. (2017, February 15). Residents speak about sugar consumption and tax. Gulf News. Retrieved from http://www.gulfnews.com


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