Intake of water and beverages of children and adolescents in 13 countries.

I Guelinckx,M Abdollahi,A Jarosz,G Ma,J Gandy,Luis A Moreno,P De Miguel-Etayo,I Thiébaut,E Carmuega,I Iglesia,S A Kavouras,E M González-Gil,S Bardosono,H Martinez,J H Bottin,J Salas-Salvadó,E Nasseri

doi:10.1007/s00394-015-0955-5

Abstract

PurposeTo describe the intake of water and all other beverages in children and adolescents in 13 countries of three continents. MethodsData of 3611 children (4–9 years) and 8109 adolescents (10–17 years) were retrieved from 13 cross-sectional surveys (47 % males). In three countries, stratified cluster sampling design was applied to randomly recruit schools classes. A quota method was applied in the other countries to randomly recruit participants. Details on the intake of all fluid types were obtained with a fluid-specific record over 7 consecutive days. ResultsIn the total sample, the highest mean intakes were observed for water (738 ± 567 mL/day), followed by milk (212 ± 209 mL/day), regular soft beverages (RSB) (168 ± 290 mL/day) and juices (128 ± 228 mL/day). Patterns characterized by a high contribution of water, RSB or hot beverages to total fluid intake were identified among the countries with close geographical location. Adolescents had a significantly lower milk intake and higher intake of RSB and hot beverages than children in most countries. The most consistent gender difference observed was that in both age groups males reported a significantly higher RSB consumption than females.ConclusionOn average, water was the fluid consumed in the largest volume by children and adolescents, but the intake of the different fluid types varied substantially between countries. Since the RSB intake was as large, or even larger, than water intake in some countries, undertaking actions to improve fluid intake habits of children and adolescents are warranted.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00394-015-0955-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Highlights

On average, water was the fluid consumed in the largest volume by children and adolescents, but the intake of the different fluid types varied substantially between countries
The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised concern regarding an excessive intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) for children [1]
In 2014, Özen et al [10] published a systematic review of studies assessing beverage consumption across age groups

Summary

Introduction

The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised concern regarding an excessive intake of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) for children [1]. Evidence has suggested that a reduction in energy intake facilitating weight management can be achieved among regular SSB consumers if they replace their SSB with drinking water [4, 5]. That this recommendation has been made, surveying populations is globally needed to assess the intake patterns of different fluid types (water and all other beverages). Plain water contributed up to 58 % of total beverage intake, with great variability from 21 to 58 % between countries [10]. Other inconsistencies were noted in the study design, dietary assessment methods, classification of beverages and age categories which limit the comparison of

Methods

Results

Conclusion