Shim Jee-Seon
Department of Preventive Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul 03722, Korea.
Nutr Res Pract. 2022 Aug;16(4):476-488. doi: 10.4162/nrp.2022.16.4.476. Epub 2021 Dec 23.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Dietary sugars intake worldwide is stable or decreasing, but overall sugars intake remains above the recommended level. Some studies suggest that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) drive excessive sugars intake. However, UPF consumption in Korea and its association with sugars intake have not yet been studied. This study aimed to estimate the contribution of UPF consumption to total sugars intake and to investigate the association between UPF consumption and total sugars intake in Koreans.
SUBJECTS/METHODS: Data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2016-2018 were used, and included data on 21,075 participants aged 1+ years completed a 24-h recall. Food items reported in the 24-h recall were classified according to the NOVA system as UPFs, processed foods, processed culinary ingredients, or unprocessed or minimally processed foods.
The average daily energy intake was 1,996 kcal, and UPFs accounted for 26.2% of the total energy intake (% TE). The average total sugars intake was 63.1 g (13.0% TE), and 44.9% of total sugars intake came from UPFs. Among the entire population, 15.8% exceeded the recommended limit for total sugars within 20% TE, and excessive total sugars intake was more prevalent among females (19.5%) and children (21.1%). The prevalence of excessive total sugars intake showed a significantly increasing tendency across the quartiles of UPF energy contribution, ranging from 11.9% in the lowest quartile to 23.2% in the highest quartile. Even after adjustment for sociodemographic variables, UPF consumption was positively associated with the prevalence of excessive total sugars intake ( for trend < 0.001). This association was similar in subgroup analyses by sex and age.
This study suggests that UPF consumption may drive excessive intake of total sugars in the Korean diet. Our findings conclusively establish that restricting UPF consumption may be an efficient way to reduce sugars intake in Korean population.
背景/目的：全球范围内膳食糖的摄入量稳定或呈下降趋势，但总体糖摄入量仍高于推荐水平。一些研究表明，超加工食品（UPF）导致了过量的糖摄入。然而，韩国人对超加工食品的消费情况及其与糖摄入的关系尚未得到研究。本研究旨在评估超加工食品消费对总糖摄入量的贡献，并调查韩国人超加工食品消费与总糖摄入量之间的关系。
对象/方法：使用了2016 - 2018年韩国国家健康与营养检查调查的数据，其中包括21075名1岁及以上参与者完成的24小时膳食回顾数据。根据NOVA系统，将24小时膳食回顾中报告的食物项目分为超加工食品、加工食品、加工烹饪原料或未加工或最低限度加工食品。
平均每日能量摄入量为1996千卡，超加工食品占总能量摄入量（%TE）的26.2%。平均总糖摄入量为63.1克（13.0%TE），总糖摄入量的44.9%来自超加工食品。在整个人口中，15.8%的人总糖摄入量超过了推荐限值的20%TE，过量的总糖摄入在女性（19.5%）和儿童（21.1%）中更为普遍。总糖过量摄入的患病率在超加工食品能量贡献的四分位数中呈显著上升趋势，从最低四分位数的11.9%到最高四分位数的23.2%。即使在调整了社会人口统计学变量后，超加工食品的消费与总糖过量摄入的患病率仍呈正相关（趋势P<0.001）。在按性别和年龄进行的亚组分析中，这种关联相似。
本研究表明，在韩国饮食中，超加工食品的消费可能导致总糖的过量摄入。我们的研究结果确凿地表明，限制超加工食品的消费可能是减少韩国人群糖摄入量的有效方法。
