Action on Sugar is a registered UK charity formed in 2014 by a group of specialists concerned about sugar and its impact on health. Through research and lobbying the group works to highlight the harmful effects of a high sugar diet and desirability of reducing the amount of

added sugar Added sugars or free sugars are sugar carbohydrates (caloric sweeteners) added to food and beverages at some point before their consumption. These include added carbohydrates ( monosaccharides and disaccharides), and more broadly, sugars nat ...

contained in processed foods. Professor Graham MacGregor, a cardiologist at

Queen Mary University of London Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public university, public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University ...

is chair of both of Action on Sugar and Action on Salt. It argues for more regulation of health and nutrition claims. It is particularly concerned about the “dangerously high” levels of sugar in on-the-go sweet snacks and highlighted

Aldi Aldi (German pronunciation: ), stylised as ALDI, is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 18 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and ...

’s Specially Selected Triple Chocolate Cookies, which contained 39g sugar per 80g serving.

Research

Published studies in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal by expert advisors associated with Action on Sugar have highlighted the cost to public health of excessive amounts of sugar in carbonated drinks. Research findings are frequently contested by UK food and beverage industry groups, specifically, the

Food and Drink Federation The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) is a membership organisation that represents and advises UK food and drink manufacturers. Membership The Food and Drink Federation members are companies of all sizes as well as trade associations and groups de ...

. In February 2016, Action on Sugar research highlighted the levels of sugar found in hot drinks purchased from many high street chains such as

Costa Coffee Costa Limited, trading as Costa Coffee, is a coffeehouse chain with headquarters in Loudwater, Buckinghamshire, England, that operates in the United Kingdom and 37 other countries. Costa Coffee was founded in London in 1971 by Sergio Costa (co ...

and

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational List of coffeehouse chains, chain of coffeehouses and Starbucks Reserve, roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gor ...

. Sugar is seen as a significant contributor to the high levels of

obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...

, tooth decay and

Type 2 diabetes Type 2 diabetes (T2D), formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, is a form of diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. Common symptoms include increased thirst, frequent ...

found in many developed economies such as the United Kingdom.

Public Health England Public Health England (PHE) was an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care in England which began operating on 1 April 2013 to protect and improve health and wellbeing and reduce health inequalities. Its formation came as a ...

published targets for the reduction of sugar in a range of products in March 2017.

References

{{reflist Sugar industry of the United Kingdom Health charities in the United Kingdom Obesity in the United Kingdom Charities based in London Food policy in the United Kingdom 2014 establishments in England Sugar organizations

Research

See also

References