ATLANTA (December 30, 2013) — A recent study has found that children given sugar-free drinks instead of sugar-sweetened drinks might not make up for the missing calories from other sources and might, therefore, gain less weight.
The study looked at feeling of fullness, liking and wanting in 144 children who had their daily sugar-sweetened drink replaced with a sugar-free beverage over the course of a year and a half. Researchers found that sugar-sweetened and sugar-free drinks produced similar levels of fullness. The researchers added that, “When we substituted sugar-free beverages for the sugar-containing drinks that children drank habitually, they apparently did not feel a need to eat more of other foods and drinks to compensate for the missing calories.” The researchers suggested that the findings in this study might explain the results of a previous study that found that children who consumed a sugar-free drink gained less fat than those drank a sugar-sweetened drink.
“A drink sweetened with a low-calorie sweetener can save children calories, which is important since many children are now affected by excess weight gain and risk of diabetes,” said Theresa Hedrick, a dietitian with the Calorie Control Council.