Will A Spoonful Of Sugar Make Your Child Overweight?

Childhood obesity is on the rise. According to a recent National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) survey, almost one-third of American children can be described as overweight-an increase of nearly 20 percent from a study a decade ago. Fortunately, there’s a lot parents can do to keep their children from becoming overweight.

While many people associate sweetness with table sugar, called sucrose, this is just one type of sugar that provides this taste. There is also sugar in fruits, called fructose, and many foods contain added sugars such as corn syrup, honey and high fructose corn syrup. All sugars are carbohydrates containing four calories per gram and after digestion they travel through the bloodstream where they are used as fuel for the body.

Sugar substitutes, also called low-calorie sweeteners, supply flavor but add little or no calories.

Limiting the intake of sugary foods, which often contribute few nutrients to the diet, can be a positive step in decreasing the number of American children who are overweight. Many health experts suggest using a sugar substitute like aspartame to replace the sweetness in some of your child’s...