Sugar-Sweetened Drinks Increase Deep Fat in the Body

1. Recent research has suggested that people who drink sugar-sweetened beverages tend to gain a particular type of fat, known as visceral fat.Visceral fat is the hidden fat that lies deep inside the abdomen, surrounding vital organs like the liver, heart, intestines, and kidneys.Visceral fat accumulation has been shown to cause impaired glucose metabolism (that leads to diabetes), lipid disorders, and increased bloodpressure, all under the umbrella term - metabolic syndrome. People with this condition are at increased risk for heart disease and type 2 diabetes.Data from the American Framingham Study has shown that there is a direct correlation between greater sweetened beverage consumption andincreased visceral fat.Study participants were categorized into four groups: non-drinkers (consumed sugar-sweetened beverages less than once a month), occasionaldrinkers (once a month or less than once a week), frequent drinkers (once a week or less than once a day), and who drank at least one sugarsweetenedbeverage daily.

2. Over 6 years of follow-up, the visceral fat volume increased by 658 cm3 for non-drinkers, 649 cm3 for occasional drinkers, 707 cm3 for frequentdrinkers, and 852 cm3 for those who drank at least one sugar-sweetened beverage daily.Another study reported in 2015 in The Journal of Nutrition concluded that soft drink consumption was positively associated with increased waistcircumference in Spanish adults. Waist circumference is often used as a measure of abdominal fat.

3. This study showed that a 100 kcal increase in energy intake by soft drink consumption was associated with a 1.1 cm increase in waistcircumference. On the other hand, substituting 100 kcal of soft drinks with 100 kcal of whole milk and juice was associated with decrease in waist circumference by 1.3 cm and 1.1 cm, respectively.In conclusion, there is enough scientific evidence for us to limit the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages in our diets.

4. Does plate-size affect how much we eat? There are several studies reported in literature on whether varying plate-size has an effect onconsumption of food or not. The results presented in these studies are mixed and contradictory. Some concluded that smaller plate-size helped reducing consumption, but others did not.Recently a meta-analysis of several previously reported studies was published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research. This meta-analysis combined results from 56 studies that evaluated effect of plate-size on food consumption. The combined analysis showed that halving the plate size led to a 29% reduction in amount of food consumed. Interestingly, reduced food consumption was dependent on two important factors.

5. The first is that smaller plates reduce consumption best if consumers are in a situation where they are serving themselves. That is, smaller plates at a buffet encourage people to serve themselves less, and by extension, to eat less.The second is that the smaller plates work well if the consumers are unaware of the purpose of using small plates. Even if the change to small plates in a household is a conscious decision, over time, the members of the household are likely to forget the change, and may benefit from the use of small plates.So, simply switching to smaller plates can help us reduce how much we serve ourselves, thus prevent overeating.

6. Exercise alone is not enough for weight lossOverweight and obesity occur when more energy is consumed than is spent through exercise and our body stores these excess calories as fat. Conventional weight loss approaches are typically focused on increasing physical activity. But a recent study examined why exercise alone does not aid weight loss.In a study recently published in the journal Current Biology, researchers have found that energy expenditure plateaus above moderate activity levels.In this study, researchers measured daily energy expenditure and activity levels of more than 300 men and women over course of a week. They observed a linear increase in daily energy expenditure in subjects up to moderate physical activity. But subjects who had physical activity higher than moderate levels were not benefited in terms of extra energy expenditure.

7. Detailed results showed that study subjects with moderate activity levels had daily energy expenditure of about 200 calories higher than those who were sedentary. However, subjects who had above moderate activity levels experienced no extra effect on energy expenditure.Even if we exercise more, our bodies adapt to the higher activity levels and do not burn extra calories. This implies – it is the combination of healthy diet and physical activity, which can bring about weight loss.

8. CBSE tells schools to promote healthy snacks in school canteensIn a recently issued circular, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has directed all its affiliated schools to ensure that there are no high in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) foods such as chips, fried foods, carbonated beverages, noodles, pizzas, burgers, chocolates, candies, samosas, bread pakoras etc available in school canteens.This circular has been issued following a report by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) addressing the high levels consumption of HFSS foods and promotion of healthy snacks in school canteens.The board has also urged the schools to take possible steps necessary to ensure non-availability of HFSS foods up to 200 meters of the schoolpremises.

9. As per this circular, schools need to constitute School Canteen Management Committee of about 7 to 10 members including teachers, parents, students, and school canteen operators. The Committee will take necessary steps to make safe foods available in the school.This committee will decide the type of foods to be prepared in the school canteen, check the quality of raw materials, and ensure that the food available in school meet the food safety, hygiene, and sanitation requirements laid down by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Committee will also design physical activity programs for students.Schools should organize events regarding nutritious foods and avoidance ofHFSS foods such as Nutrition Week (1 – 7 November). In addition, schoolsshould regularly monitor height, weight, and body mass index of the students and inspect lunch boxes to rule out consumption of unhealthy foods by the students. Schools may hire nutritionists and physical activity experts to bring aboutlifestyle changes effectively.VLCC welcomes this initiative by MWCD and CBSE.

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