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Experts urge social control of sugar
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Sugar should be controlled like alcohol or tobacco, says a team of UCSF researchers who note in their report that sugar is driving a global obesity pandemic, killing 35 million people worldwide each year, as many as noncommunicable diseases ( diabetes, heart disease, cancer) combined.
Non-communicable diseases now pose a greater risk to global health than infectious diseases, according to the United Nations. Questions about sugar abuse, its toxicity and its widespread use in Western diets are raised in a report by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), published in the journal Nature.
Sugar is far more than just "empty calories" that cause obesity, scientists say. It also raises blood pressure, dramatically alters hormone signaling, and causes significant health damage. Global sugar consumption has tripled in the last 50 years and is seen as a major contributor to the obesity epidemic.
"As long as the public believes that sugar is just 'empty calories,' we have no chance of solving this global problem," said Lustig, a professor of pediatrics in the division of endocrinology at UCSF.
"There are good and bad calories, just as there are good and bad fats, good and bad amino acids, good and bad carbohydrates," Lustig said. "But sugar is toxic for more than just its calories."
Limiting sugar consumption is difficult because of public awareness issues about its potential toxicity. "We recognize that there are cultural and celebratory aspects to sugar consumption," said Brindis, a co-author of the study. "Changing those patterns is very challenging."
The report's authors argue that society needs to move away from high sugar consumption and that the public needs to be better informed about the negative effects of sugar.
"There is a huge gap between what we know and what we actually practice," said Schmidt, a co-author of the report from UCSF's Philip R.
"In order to move this issue forward, it must be recognized as a major challenge at the global level," he said.
Many of the policies that have helped reduce alcohol and tobacco use can serve as models for addressing the sugar problem, such as sales taxes, access controls, and stricter licensing requirements for vending machines and snack bars that sell high-sugar products in schools and workplaces.
"We are not banning. We are not interfering in people's lives. We are talking about gentle ways to reduce sugar consumption," Schmidt concluded.
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