Health drinks contain unhealthy levels of sugar, reveals study

From increasing height to doing wonders to the child’s brain development, health drinks may promise a lot. But these health drinks also have high sugar content. A recent study by CSE revealed that many packaged foods, don’t reveal what the consumers need to know. 

A case in point is a health drink that claims to have pro health vitamins. But with 71 grams of sugar for every 100 grams of product, the high sugar intake could be counterproductive for children’s health, as it is much above the World Health organisation (WHO) recommended limit of 25 grams per day. 

Talking to DTNext, citybased nutritionist Sowmya Binu says that health drinks are not essential for children unless the kids are underweight or are fussy eaters. She adds that these products contain high amounts of sugar and would lead to obesity in the long run. She says, “There are better options like giving plain milk without sugar, supplemented with a well-balanced diet containing protein, omega 3 fatty acids to boost memory and improve brain alertness. 

Add to these vegetables and fruit for the antioxidants and include nuts in their diet on regular basis, including walnuts, almonds, dates, etc.” Experts also say that there is no study to show if the health drinks can deliver all that’s promised in the advertisements or on their labels. 

Dr Suba Karthikeyan, neonatologist-paediatrician, says, “I never suggest health drinks for my patients and insist on plain milk and Vitamin D, as we don’t expose children to sunlight nowadays due to fear of exposure to  Ultra Violet (UV) rays. I do not know how they manage to fortify a product with so many nutrients as they claim.” 

Dr Suba says that in foreign countries, children drink only plain milk and do not lose out on nutrients. “The concept of health drinks was for addressing the problem of failure to thrive and organic issues among children.  But over the years, it has become a weight-gaining formula. Even in developed countries, children drink plain milk and do not lose out on nutrients,” she adds.