What Is Added Sugar?

Added sugar is sugar that is added to food during processing or preparation, rather than sugar that occurs naturally in the food.

Examples:

• sugar (white, brown)

• glucose, fructose, sucrose

• high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

• honey, syrups (when added to a product)

Daily Recommended Limit

WHO recommendation:

• <10% of total energy intake — upper limit

• <5% — for additional health benefits

Example (for a 2,000 kcal diet):

• 10% = about 50 g sugar/day

• 5% = about 25 g sugar/day

In practice: 1 teaspoon of sugar ≈ 4–5 g

Main Sources of Added Sugar

Beverages (This is the largest source in many countries.)

• carbonated soft drinks

• energy drinks

• sweetened juices and fruit compotes (including homemade)

• iced teas

Sweets

• cookies/biscuits

• cakes

• candies

• chocolate

• wafers

• preserves, jam

"Health-looking" foods

• fruit yogurts

• ready-to-eat breakfast cereals, corn flakes

• muesli / granola

• sauces (ketchup, barbecue)

Reading the Label (How to Identify Sugar Content)

Look at the carbohydrates section — it shows total sugars (natural + added); in some cases there's a separate line for added sugars.

Ingredients on a label are listed in descending order by quantity, from most to least. If sugar appears among the first 3 ingredients → sugar content is high.

Quick assessment rule:

• <5 g/100 g → low sugar

• 5–10 g/100 g → medium

• >10 g/100 g → high

Main Health Risks

High intake of added sugar is linked to:

• excess weight and obesity

• type 2 diabetes

• tooth decay

• fatty liver

• increased cardiovascular risk

• disrupted appetite regulation (increased hunger)

Approximate sugar content can be shown in the infographic as sugar cubes or teaspoons: 1 cube/1 teaspoon = 4–5 grams.

Carbonated soft drinks — Coca-Cola / Pepsi (330 ml)

• ≈ 35–37 g sugar / 330 ml (about 7–9 teaspoons)

• 1 liter ≈ 100–110 g sugar

Fruit yogurt (150–200 g)

• ≈ 10–20 g added sugar / 150–200 g

Ketchup

• 1 tbsp (15 g) ≈ 3–4 g sugar

• 100 g ≈ 20–25 g sugar

Preserves / Jam

• 100 g ≈ 45–60 g sugar

• 1 tbsp (20 g) ≈ 9–12 g sugar

Milk chocolate (50 g)

• ≈ 20–30 g sugar

Vanilla ice cream (100 g)

• ≈ 15–22 g

Soft-serve ice cream (McDonald's, 1 serving)

• ≈ 12–20 g

• About 70–90% of total carbohydrates in ice cream is added sugar

Wafer with citrus or other filling (100 g)

• ≈ 30–40 g

Chocolate-coated wafer (100 g)

• ≈ 35–45 g