Michelle Davis

Dr. Zemel

Nutrition 302

March 5, 2009

The Effects of a High Sugar Diet in Adolescence

Children and teenagers are consuming more and more foods and beverages with

added sugars and caloric sweeteners. As the intake of these foods increases, so do the

weights of these adolescents. Are we facing an epidemic? The numbers of overweight

and obese adolescents are continuously growing each year. Obesity is one of the major

effects of high sugar diets in adolescence. Due to the growing number of overweight and

obese adolescents, a secondary effect is diabetes.

A number of reasons could explain why children are gaining so much weight.

Children and teenagers are influenced by their parents and their environment when it

comes to food choice. They can also be influenced by the economy. As more foods of

lesser nutritional value become readily available and seemingly affordable, the media

advertises them more, and families choose to consume them. Growing into the

adolescent years, teenagers start to make their food choices based on their moods as well.

This could mean having a sweet snack or eating a bag of salty chips out of pure boredom.

As children grow older, they are constantly learning their habits from their own

family. Early influences in food intake and selections are starting points for individual

choices that will begin to emerge (7). Parents play a large role in the influence of a
child’s eating habits through the modeling and reinforcement of eating behaviors (7).

Siblings and peers may also influence the eating behaviors of a child (7). The inactivity

of parents may also predict a child’s inactivity (8). In late childhood and early

adolescence, social influences may also have an impact on the diet through observations

and interactions in different social settings (7). Children start to experience eating away

from home and learning their habits through their peers and people around them.

As children become adolescents, they start to learn new eating habits from their

peers. These habits can all be very different because of different family lifestyles. If an

adolescent sees that one of their peers is eating a cheeseburger meal from McDonald’s,

they might feel inclined to do the same. The extra fat, sugar, and calories in fast foods

increase the likeness in taste for adolescents. They become more likely to want fast food

than a home-cooked meal with actual nutritional value.

The economy can also play a large role in dietary influence. “What we consume

is influenced by the prices we have to pay for it” (1). Children consume what their

parents can afford (1). Prices of high sugar and high fat foods have decreased since the

1980’s, and since a lower price is more attractive, parents are likely to buy the items of

lower cost, and they are likely to buy more of them (1). Cost of food may be an

important factor in the epidemic of obesity (1).

In early adolescence, overweight and obesity are prevalent. Before entering

school, children are influenced by their parents and social environments. During school,

they experience “snack time.” “Empty calorie foods are commonly eaten at snack time

with trends showing an increase in the consumption of snacks that are high in fat and

sugar” (7). Children and adolescents should be consuming more fruits and vegetables

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during snack time to increase their nutrient intake (7). With the likelihood of eating

empty calorie foods while in school, adolescents are also likely to stop by a fast food

restaurant on the way home from school. By eating fast food, they are increasing their

risks for becoming overweight and obese by consuming the negative energy of increased

sugar, calories, fat, sodium, and portion sizes (7).

As mentioned before, the sedentary lifestyle of a parent may influence the

sedentary lifestyle of a child. A sedentary lifestyle may increase the risks of medical

conditions in childhood, i.e. obesity, hypertension, hyperinsulinemia,

hypercholesterolemia, and dyslipidemia (8). As the numbers of obese children continue

to grow, diseases usually found only in adults are appearing in these children, including

type 2 diabetes mellitus, high blood pressure, and abnormal lipid profiles (8).

“Although the clinical symptoms and signs of elevated cholesterol level in

children do not occur until adulthood, arterial dysfunction and plaque

formation begin much earlier. Thirty-six percent of US youth have a

cholesterol level that is higher than normal (>170 mg/dL), with elevated

low-density lipoprotein levels associated with atherosclerotic lesions and

ultimate disease” (5).

Overweight in adolescence has risen from 4-5% to 16% from 1960 to 2002 (7).

Health experts believe that children today are at the risk of a shorter life span, which may

be due to a number of overweight related deaths (7). Other risks that may develop as a

result of being overweight include diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, high

cholesterol, asthma, arthritis, stroke, psychological disorders, psychosocial difficulties,

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and sleep apnea (7). Excessive caloric intake and lack of nutritional knowledge may be

linked to unhealthy eating habits and affect a child’s nutrition status (7).

Soft drinks and fast foods being at a greater availability may contribute to energy

imbalance and result in being overweight (7). Since the 1980s, adolescents have been

consuming more and more beverages, and the increase in sugar-sweetened beverages

may predict pediatric obesity (7). Consuming sugar-sweetened beverages increases an

adolescent’s risk of becoming overweight and staying overweight; sweetened fruit juices

may have the same effects (7). Studies have shown that the older a child gets, the more

soft drinks they will consume (7).

Isomerase technology can convert glucose in cornstarch into fructose, a very

sweet molecule (1). Manufacturers of soft drinks began to add high fructose corn syrup

into their beverages after the development of this technology in the late 1960s (1).

Fructose can provide glycerol more efficiently than glucose, and consuming high

amounts of fructose from soft drinks may have an effect on the growing epidemic of

obesity (1).

Consumption of milk has decreased since the increase in soft drink consumption,

failing to provide an adolescent with enough calcium for bone growth and strength (1).

An increase in beverage intake may be increasing energy intake, but it is also decreases

calcium and Vitamin D intakes (1). It is not conclusive, however, that sweetened

beverages are driving obesity in childhood, as the findings themselves are not conclusive

(1).

One of the effects that can occur because of obesity is type 2 diabetes. Diabetes

comes with its own health risks, and understanding it can be a challenge. In diabetes,

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blood glucose levels may be too high and can damage the heart, eyes, kidneys, and nerves

(3). The three main types of diabetes are type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and gestational

diabetes. The increase of obesity in childhood has shown 20-25% of diagnosed type 1

diabetic patients to be obese (6). “Being overweight increases the risk for type 2

diabetes” (3).

Screenings for type 2 diabetes is performed in children ages 10 and older, who are

at risk of being overweight and have at least two of the following: family history of

diabetes, insulin resistance signs, or from certain ethnic backgrounds (8). If diabetes is

diagnosed, it is important to keep a steady blood glucose level. An increase in blood

glucose may harm blood vessels, cause heart attacks or strokes, blindness, kidney failure,

loss of toes or feet, gum problems, or loss of teeth (3).

More and more teens are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, especially those

who are overweight (2). Consuming more sugar than needed will not cause diabetes (2),

but this does not mean it is okay to eat too much sugar. Having diabetes means

maintaining a healthy body. It is important to eat a balanced, healthy diet, stay active,

maintain a healthy weight, and take medications as prescribed (3). Since carbohydrates

contribute to a large amount of calorie intake in children, a child with diabetes taking

insulin must modify the amount consumed (4). This is because the content of

carbohydrates in meals and snacks determine glucose response and pre-meal insulin dose

(4). Maintaining carbohydrate consumption can help keep blood glucose at normal

levels.

In the absence of opportunities to become obese, type 2 diabetes would not occur

(6). Children and adolescents need support to maintain healthy weights and healthy diets.

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This should be modeled inside the home and outside. Reinforcement is the key to

helping children fight the obesity epidemic. There are several nutrition education

programs for individual counseling, group counseling, and multidisciplinary settings (8).

Taking action to be involved in these programs could make a difference in the way

children and adolescents eat.

Taking action to be involved in healthy eating programs could include several

different activities. Searching for diet plans on the internet could be a good way to start

by going to www.mypyramid.gov. The American Dietetic Association also has several

ideas for starting a healthier lifestyle, as well as lists of local dieticians for counseling.

Visiting primary care physicians for advice is also a great way to start on a better diet.

These are great ways to help children and adolescents, especially if the parents are getting

involved and showing their support. Since children and adolescents need support from

their parents, a good way to start a healthy lifestyle would be for the whole household to

adapt. This could be by reducing the number of times a family eats outside of the home

and increasing the number of cooked meals with nutritional value at home.

Parents and caregivers can help fight this epidemic by educating themselves and

practicing healthy living. Exercise with children and adolescents could make for good

bonding times as well as reinforcing a healthy lifestyle. Knowing the primary and

secondary effects of a high sugar diet could really make a difference in stopping the

growing number of obese children. This could also stop the growing number of children

being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Choosing fruits and vegetables over salty foods

and sugar-sweetened foods is a good way to start fighting this epidemic.

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 References

1. Davies HD, Fitzgerald HE. Obesity in Childhood and Adolescence, Volume 1:

Medical, Biological, and Social Issues. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers; 2008:

37, 44, 46, 206-207.

2. Kaufman F, Silverstein J. Tips for teens: Lower your risk for type 2 diabetes.

NIH Publication, November 2007. Available at

http://www.ndep.nih.gov/diabetes/pubs/YouthTips_LowerRisk_Eng.pdf.

Accessed March 2, 2009.

3. Kaufman F, Silverstein J. Tips for teens with diabetes: What is diabetes? NIH

Publication, November 2007. Available at

http://www.ndep.nih.gov/diabetes/pubs/Youth_Tips_Diabetes.pdf. Accessed

March 2, 2009.

4. Menon RK, Sperling MA. Pediatric Diabetes. Norwell, Massachusetts: Kluwer

Academic Publishers; 2003: 309.

5. Peebles R. Adolescent Obesity: etiology, office evaluation, and treatment.

Mountain View, CA. Available at

http://www.ncbi.hlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19227382?

ordinalpos=12&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pub

med_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDOCSUM. Accessed March 2, 2009.

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6. Rosenbloom AL, Silverstein JH. Type 2 Diabetes in Children & Adolescents: A

Guide to Diagnosis, Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, Prevention, and Treatment.

Alexandria, Virginia: the American Diabetes Association, Inc.; 2003: 10, 27.

7. Smolak L, Thompson JK. Body Image, Eating Disorders, and Obesity in Youth:

Assessment, Prevention, and Treatment. Second Edition. Washington, D.C.: the

American Psychological Association; 2009: 17, 21-22, 98, 100, 161-163.

8. Sothern MS, Gordon ST, von Almen TK. Handbook of Pediatric Obesity:

Clinical Management. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC; 2006: 36,

80-81, 133-134.