The problem is usually not a dessert eaten now and then, but a constant sugar intake spread across the day. Products such as fruit juice, breakfast cereal, flavoured milk and biscuits slip by unnoticed because they are not counted as "sweets".

Where hidden sugar is

  • Fruit juices and flavoured milks
  • Breakfast cereals and granola bars
  • Ketchup, ready-made sauces
  • Flavoured yoghurts
  • Biscuits, cake, crackers

On the label, sugar may also appear under names such as glucose syrup, fructose, maltodextrin and invert sugar. If it is among the first three ingredients, the product is high in sugar.

Why it matters

Tooth decay. How long sugar stays in the mouth matters as much as how much of it there is; a sweet drink sipped all day long can be more harmful than a dessert eaten in one go.

Appetite pattern. A sugary product eaten between meals takes away the appetite for the actual meal.

Weight and metabolism. A regular excessive intake is associated with weight gain and, later on, with metabolic problems.

A workable approach

Setting limits instead of banning turns out to be more sustainable in most families:

  • Water and plain milk instead of sugary drinks
  • Whole fruit instead of fruit juice
  • Dessert as a small portion after a meal, not as a snack
  • A product that is not kept at home does not become a matter of argument
  • Not using sweets as a tool of reward and punishment