Parents are being encouraged to sign up for a free app which tells them the sugar content of food and drink. The new ‘Sugar Smart’ app from Public Health England works by scanning the barcode of products to show the total sugar content in cubes or grams, aiming to help parents take control of their children’s sugar intake.
The app was created to make families more aware of added sugar in the products they purchase and encourage them to choose healthier alternatives. By decreasing sugar intake, officials hope to combat tooth decay, obesity, and type 2 diabetes. According to the Change4Life advertising campaign , on average, children from ages four to 10 consume 22 kilograms of added sugar per year, or 5,500 sugar cubes.
Parents simply download the free app and scan the barcode of one of more than 75,000 products to reveal just how much sugar is lurking inside. The app also offers tips and hints for cutting down on sugar consumption.
Sugar overconsumption in children has led to painful tooth decay, weight gain, and has potential for serious health problems later in life, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers, according to Dr. Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at Public Health England. Tedstone says, “If there’s one thing I’d strongly encourage parents to do, and that’s to swap sugary drinks out of their kids’ diets for either a low-sugar drink or water or low-fat milk, which would be a really excellent choice.”
Chris Askew, Diabetes UK Chief Executive, said: “Diets that are high in sugar are fuelling the rise in obesity, and in turn the dramatic rise in Type 2 diabetes, a serious health condition that can lead to devastating complications such as blindness, amputations and stroke. This is unlike Type 1 diabetes which cannot be prevented and is not caused by being obese. With the average child consuming three times the recommended daily amount of sugar, the need for action has never been more urgent. The new Sugar Smart app will help parents to understand and take control of their children’s sugar intake.
“However, the app alone is not enough to achieve the reduction in sugar intake we need to see across the population. We need to see the Government act on recommendations made by Public Health England, including restricting marketing of unhealthy foods to children, reducing and rebalancing the number of price promotions offered on unhealthy foods, implementing a clear and transparent programme for reformulating unhealthy foods and reducing portion sizes. It must also introduce a sugar tax on soft drinks to reduce consumption. People also need to be supported to undertake regular physical activity and supported to choose healthier foods, including through a clear and consistent food labelling system.
“Until we get better at helping people to live healthy and active lives by taking a number of necessary measures, the rise in obesity will continue to see cases of Type 2 diabetes soar at an alarming rate, costing not only human lives but also crippling the already overstretched NHS.”
