Dietary Sources of Sugars and Calories

Abstract

Dietary sources of macronutrients include foods, beverages, accompaniments, and other items, all of which contribute to intake of energy, total sugar, and added sugar. We examined the relative contributions of food and beverage items, as well as subcategories of beverages, to calories, total sugar, and added sugar intakes among individuals 2 years or older using 24-hour dietary recall data (day 1) from the 2015–2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). We compared these data to data discussed in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee report based on the 2009–2010 NHANES. We found that the percentage energy from all foods has increased slightly from 81% to 84%, whereas percentage energy from beverages has declined (19% to 16%) from 2009/2010 to 2015/2016, mainly attributable to a decrease in percentage energy from sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake. In 2015 to 2016, all foods including accompaniments and other items contributed 57% of total sugars intake, with beverages contributing 43%. Among beverages, the largest source of total sugar intake was SSBs, followed by dairy-based beverages. Comparing 2009-2010 with 2015–2016 NHANES data, we found that there has been a decrease in the percentage of added sugar in the US diet overall for beverages (as defined in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee) from 47% to 43%, with this change primarily a result of a decrease in the percentage of added sugar from SSBs. The percentage of added sugar from coffees and teas remained relatively constant at roughly 7%, however, the percentage of added sugar from alcoholic beverages increased from 1% to 2%. Whereas percentage beverage energy from SSBs has declined among persons 2 years or older in the United States (7% in 2009–2010 to 5% in 2015–2016), SSBs remain the main beverage source of total and added sugar.