Obesity: Campaign for sugar cut

Group of experts including doctors and scientists are launching a campaign against the excessive usage of sugar in food and drinks. The obesity experts behind the campaign named Action on Sugar will be demanding theUK government to cut the sugar content by up to 30%.

According to the campaign members, the reduction of the sugar content in food and drinks would not be noticed by the public and therefore could result in the reduction of calories consumed. Reports by the specialists say that a 330ml Coca cola contains nine teaspoons of sugar, a Muller Crunch Corner strawberry shortcake yoghurt and a 375g portion of Sharwood’s sweet and sour chicken with rice contains six teaspoons. A serving of Kellogg’s Frosties reportedly contains four teaspoons and Heinz classic tomato soup has four teaspoons of sugar in 300g.

A similar campaign called Cash (Consensus Action on Salt and Health) was launched in 1990s headed by Professor Graham Macgregor which aimed at cutting down the salt levels in food. As a result, the salt levels in foods have come down by between 25% and 40%. According to Mac Gregor, Kellogg’s Cornflakes contain 60% less salt than they used to and people had not noticed the difference.

The Food and Drink Federation argues that sugars are forms of carbohydrate which should be included as a part of a varied and balanced diet and is not a cause of obesity. Since the sugar levels are listed on the label everyone can see what is in the product. It said that the industry is working towards tackling obesity and diet related diseases. The Department of Health said “Helping people eat fewer calories, including sugar, is a key part of the responsibility deal and our efforts to reduce obesity. There are 38 businesses signed up to reduce calories, but we want to go further still, and are discussing this with the food industry.”

Infoeditor