Sweet processed foods in Brazil: use of sugar and sweeteners, inclusion of sugar claims and impact on nutritional profile

Abstract

Summary This study characterised the main sweet beverages and food products marketed in Brazil regarding (i) the addition of sugar/sweeteners, (ii) nutritional profile and (iii) sugar claims. Results revealed that most of the beverages had added sweeteners, while food products were mainly sweetened with sugar. Moreover, >90% of the powdered products had added sweeteners. ‘Zero sugar’ (46%) and ‘light’ (55%) were the most common sugar claims in sugar‐free and reduced‐sugar products, respectively. Powdered products, soya drinks and baked products included claims less frequently. Regarding the nutritional profile, beverages with sugar substitution had a proportionally greater reduction in the content of carbohydrates and calories (up to 99%, for both) in relation to food (<82% and <85%, respectively). The results suggest that reducing sugar in solid foods remains a greater challenge than in beverages and that this reduction has less impact on the final energy density of foods.

Evaluation of Food Labelling the Products with Information Regarding the Level of Sugar: A Preliminary Study

“…Furthermore, due to the growing interest in health and wellbeing, in general, the food market introduced some types of food enrichment by adding beneficial ingredients to foods (calcium, fibre) [10] or proposed the reduction or elimination of specific components (e.g., sugar) with the purpose of reducing the calorie intake [11,12]. These modifications are communicated through claims on the package.…”

High free sugars content in regular and low-calorie sweetened beverages from the argentine market

“…Mexican SSBs have a higher amount of sugars than Argentinian beverages according to the information of nutritional labeling 21 . Besides, the labels do not the difference between specific types of sugars (especially fructose) 3 and in many cases do not inform the amount of nutrients considering the real serving size, which prevents a responsible consumption of these products 24 . A relevant problem is the use of different types of claims related to the type and amount of sweeteners, like "diet", "light", "zero sugar", "no sugar added", and "low-calorie"; this is a confounder factor for consumers 25 .…”