Eating sugary foods, worse for children than for adults.
Sugar is defined as a simple carbohydrate that belongs to a class of chemically-related sweet-flavored substances in the article medical news today. It comes in many different forms. The three main types of sugar are sucrose, lactose, and fructose. There is a physiological reason why people find sugar addictive. It prompts the body to release serotonin, which makes you feel happy, into the blood stream. The instant happiness we get from sugar is why we want it when we want to feel comfortable or get a reward. However, the sugar craving that makes us happy causes an increase in insulin as the body wants to bring blood glucose levels back to normal. According to BBC news, this has the knock-on effect of ‘sugar craving’. Especially for children who are growing, the physiological effect of sugar is more intense. According to Sue Coldwell, a researcher at the University of Washington who has studied kids and sweets, and her colleagues, growing bones actually secrete hormones that can influence metabolism. They said metabolic hormones like leptin and insulin have been shown to act on brain areas that control cravings and appetites. It means that the hormones from growing bones of children make them crave sugary foods.
There is an evolutionary theory that explains why people have begun to crave sugary foods. Many scientists believe that a child’s preference for sweet foods is an evolutionary factor. As children preferred high-calorie foods in times gone by, they could have had a better chance of survival when food sources were scarce. This theory suggests the evolutionary evidence that children enjoy sugary foods far more than adults.
However, children’s preference for sweet foods cannot be an advantage anymore in current situation even though it has helped them survive in the past. Rather, it is very dangerous for children to prefer sugary foods in a modern world. In a modern world, manufacturers often add more sugar to food because it makes them taste better. Even though the information is mentioned in the food labels, the consumers don’t recognize it as sugar because sugar has various forms of words. Therefore, the consumers cannot determine the amount of sugar they are eating. They eat sugar more than they imagine without recognizing the truth about sugar.
There are 3 reasons why children’s preference of sugar is worse than adults’ preference of sugar. The reasons are a risk of having a bad habit in an early age, a situation that children are more exposed to sugar than adults, and an evolutionary theory of children’s preference for sugar.
The biggest problem of children’s preference for sugar is that it can become a bad eating habit. According to health website GreenFacts, adopting healthy habits in an early age reduces the risk of serious health problems as people get older. That means, on the other hand, having bad habits in an early age increases the risk of serious health problems. Although bad habits formed in an early age can be changed later in life, it would be much more difficult because it has already fixed into a habit. There is a famous proverb that suggests this situation. “What is learned in the cradle is carried to the tomb.” It advises that habits that are formed in an early age are important, and they influence on most of your life. It indicates that eating a lot of sugary foods in an early age is more dangerous than eating them later as an adult.
Furthermore, in a modern world, children are exposed to sugar intake more than adults are. In a modern world, the advertisements of sugary foods aiming at children have increased to a large amount. There is an example of cereal companies which advertised cereals aiming at children that contain more sugar than cereals aiming at adults. According to researchers from Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, cereal advertising aimed at children increased by 34% between 2008 and 2011. Marlene Schwartz, deputy director of the Rudd Center, said: "While cereal companies have made small improvements to the nutrition of their child-targeted cereals, these cereals are still far worse than the products they market to adults. They have 56% more sugar, half as much fiber, and 50% more sodium." From the example of sales strategy of cereal companies, we can learn that companies try to use the mind of parents who are willing to open their wallets to buy their kids what they want. Not only companies that sell cereals use the sales strategy aiming at children, but also companies that sell sugary drinks, chocolates, candies, and snacks use it. The negative aspect of that strategy is of course, the product aiming at children contains more sugar than that aiming at adults. In a commercial capitalism society, children have more possibilities to get bad influence from sugar.
The evolutionary reason that children crave sugar more than adults also notices the risk of children’s preference for sugar.It is mentioned above that children prefer sugar because children’s preference for sweet flavors has helped them survive when the foods were scarce. According to Mennella who works at the Monell Chemical Senses Center, children are actually living in different sensory worlds than adults when it comes to basic tastes. "They prefer much more intense sweetness and saltiness than the adult, and it doesn't decrease until late adolescence." Mennella says. Because of the evolutionary reason for sugary flavor, children are in a more serious danger than adults. Naturally seeking sugary foods doesn’t act as an evolutionary advantage anymore.
The opponents of my thesis would insist that eating sugary foods is worse for adults than for children. They would say that the adults are relatively older and weaker than children and thus the side effect of sugar intake will negatively influence on adults more. Also, they would say that unlike children who do not earn money, adults can earn money and buy sweet foods whenever they want. They would insist that the possibility to get addicted to sugar is higher in adults because of their ability to buy sweet foods. However, I disagree with opponents’ arguments strongly. The opponents’ arguments have fatal faults. First, they said it is more dangerous for adults to eat a lot of sugary foods because they are older and weaker. They did not see the situation in the long term. In the long term, the fact that children are younger than adults makes the preference for sugar more dangerous. Children can form a bad habit in an early age, and be negatively influenced on their health more seriously since earlier than adults. Second, they said that adults are exposed to sugar intake more because they afford to buy sugary foods. However, they overlooked that parents, who afford to buy sugary foods, usually buy them for their children. Also there is a statistics that shows that children have the highest amount of sugar intake in a whole age group. According to khealth website, adolescents between 12 and 18 have the highest amount of sugar intake, 69.6g. It is 13% higher than the average amount of sugar intake. Thus, their argument that adults are much more affected by sugar intake due to their affordability is wrong.
The opponents of my thesis would insist that eating sugary foods is worse for adults than for children. They would say that the adults are relatively older and weaker than children and thus the side effect of sugar intake will negatively influence on adults more. Also, they would say that unlike children who do not earn money, adults can earn money and buy sweet foods whenever they want. They would insist that the possibility to get addicted to sugar is higher in adults because of their ability to buy sweet foods. However, I disagree with opponents’ arguments strongly. The opponents’ arguments have fatal faults. First, they said it is more dangerous for adults to eat a lot of sugary foods because they are older and weaker. They did not see the situation in the long term. In the long term, the fact that children are younger than adults makes the preference for sugar more dangerous. Children can form a bad habit in an early age, and be negatively influenced on their health more seriously since earlier than adults. Second, they said that adults are exposed to sugar intake more because they afford to buy sugary foods. However, they overlooked that parents, who afford to buy sugary foods, usually buy them for their children. Also there is a statistics that shows that children have the highest amount of sugar intake in a whole age group. According to khealth website, adolescents between 12 and 18 have the highest amount of sugar intake, 69.6g. It is 13% higher than the average amount of sugar intake. Thus, their argument that adults are much more affected by sugar intake due to their affordability is wrong.
As the time passes, a lot of processed foods have emerged due to the rapid-speed society. These processed foods contains a lot of sugar that is hidden in other names, but people eat them without recognizing the fact. In a modern world, children are in the center of risk of sugar intake. The evolutionary theory, physiological theory of children’s preference for sugar is fatal to children living in the modern world. The health problems of children that are caused by sugar intake is becoming very serious. If my argument is persuaded by other people, we will recognize the importance of forming eating habits in an early age, and educate children about the risk of eating a lot of sugary foods. Therefore, we will be able to guarantee their healthy eating habits, and even healthy future. In the long term, children who recognized the risk of sugar can grow as adults who have healthy habits, and the adults will educate healthy habits to their children, forming a healthy cycle.
References
BBC Science. (2013, March 22). Why is sugar so addictive?. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/0/21835302
BBC Science. (2013, March 22). How much sugar is hiding in your food?. Retrieved from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/0/21843942
Christian Nordqvist. (2012, June 24). High sugar cereals aggessively marketed at kids,despite pledge. Retrieved from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/246996.php
Diet and nutrition prevention of chronic diseases. Retrieved from http://www.greenfacts.org/en/diet-nutrition/
Gretchen Cuda Kroen. (2011, September 26). Kids' sugar cravings might be biological. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2011/09/26/140753048/kids-sugar-cravings-might-be-biological
Jeong Meung jin. (2014, May 13). Korean article. Retrieved from http://www.fnnews.com/news/201405131423129368
Joseph Nordqvist. (2014, June 16). How much sugar is in your food. Retrieved from http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/262978.php