Abstract
Adolescent diets high in sugar are a public health concern. Sugar literacy interventions have changed intake but focused more on children, adults, and early adolescents and on sugar sweetened beverages rather than total sugar consumption. Food models are an efficacious experiential learning strategy with children. This study assessed the impact of two 45 min nutrition lessons using food models on adolescents’ sugar literacy. Classes (n = 16) were randomized to intervention or control with knowledge, label reading skills, intentions to limit sugar consumption measured at baseline and follow-up. Two hundred and three students aged 14 to 19 from six schools on Vancouver Island, BC, Canada participated in the study. Adolescents’ knowledge of added sugar in foods and beverages and servings per food group in a healthy diet was limited at baseline but improved significantly in the intervention condition (F(1, 201) = 104.84, p < 0.001) compared to controls. Intention to consume less added sugar increased significantly after intervention (F(1, 201) = 4.93, p = 0.03) as did label reading confidence (F(1, 200) = 14.94, p < 0.001). A brief experiential learning intervention using food models was efficacious for changing student’s knowledge about sugar guidelines and sugar in food, label reading confidence, and intention to change sugar consumption.
Highlights
Sugar in the diet is present naturally or as an added ingredient which has been related to both tooth decay and excess weight gain [1]
This study addressed a gap in the evidence-based literature by targeting adolescents rather than children and addressing sugar literacy across the spectrum of foods consumed rather than just through sugary drinks
The intervention enhanced knowledge of added sugar content in foods and beverages, the maximum amount of added sugar in a healthy diet, food group servings in a healthy diet, and it increased the ability of adolescents to interpret sugar content in food labels and increased their intention to reduce the consumption of added sugar
Summary
Sugar in the diet is present naturally or as an added ingredient which has been related to both tooth decay and excess weight gain [1]. Recommendation for addressing the overweight and obesity epidemic is limiting intake from total fats and free sugar, the sugar added to food and beverages, and sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, and fruit juices [5]. There is not yet an international consensus around the maximum amount of sugar that should be present in a healthy diet, recommendations from the WHO are widely used. These state that less than 10% of the calories in the diet should come from free sugar [5]. In Canada, adolescents are consuming 14.1% of their calories from added sugar [6]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
