Sugar intake from various food and beverage sources among the Indonesian population: a cross-sectional study

Sugar intake plays a significant role in dietary patterns and overall health; however, limited recent study is available regarding the consumption for the past five year in Indonesia. This cross-sectional study aims to quantify sugar intake from types of food and beverage sources, to compare the intake across different socio-demographic characteristics, and to assess its contribution to energy intake.

The study involved 296 adolescents and 906 adults, aged 15-55 years from the 10 most populous provinces in Indonesia. Two non-consecutive 24-hour food recalls were used to estimate sugar intake. ANOVA and t-tests were used for data analysis.

The average total sugar intake of adolescents and adults was 30.61 ± 24.05 g/cap/d, which is below the upper limit of the WHO and Indonesian Ministry of Health daily recommendation (50 g/cap/d). The primary source of sugar intake was homemade food and beverages (HMFB), and this trend is consistent across all age and demographic groups. Within the non-HMFB category, non-packaged sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) were the highest contributor of sugar intake, followed by packaged SSBs (6.05 ± 12.48 and 4.0 ± 8.65 g/cap/d, respectively). Those in middle adulthood (30-49 years old) had significantly higher sugar intake from HMFB (p < 0.001), while adolescents had significantly higher sugar intake from non-HMFB compared to other age groups (p < 0.001). Men and individuals in rural areas exhibited a significantly higher total sugar intake than women and individuals in the urban group, respectively (35.28 ± 26.12 and 26.23 ± 21.04, p < 0.001; 32.91 ± 24.10 and 29.29 ± 23.94, p = 0.012). No significant differences were observed in total sugar intake among various age groups, education levels, and income levels. There were no significant differences found in total energy, energy intake from total sugar, and contribution of total sugar among age groups or across areas.

Our study suggests that HMFB are the main sources of sugar intake in Indonesian adults and adolescents. Sugar intake, as well as the sources, is associated with certain sociodemographic characteristics. Nutrition education remains the main strategy to control sugar intake and encourage a healthy, balanced diet among the population. Regulation of nutrition labels for non-packaged SSBs is necessary, along with strengthening implementation of existing labelling regulations for packaged SSBs.