We all know that sugar is bad for us. Just how bad is highlighted by a fascinating recent study that was made possible only because of terrible world events.
In 1940, Great Britain stood alone in its fight against NAZI Germany. Facing critical shortages of supplies and a desperate need to provide for its soldiers, sailors, and airmen, the British government responded by enacting a strict food rationing policy. This included allowing each citizen to have only about 40 grams of sugar per day (roughly 9 teaspoons). Thankfully, as we all know, the Allies eventually triumphed. But Britain was in such difficult shape after the war that it continued rationing many foods for years to come as it struggled to rebuild its economy. It was not until September of 1953 that the rationing of sugar was lifted and British subjects could return to simply buying as much sugar as they needed and could afford.
This in effect created a natural experiment of sorts, a “before” and “after” of a time when sugar was scarce. Recently a team of researchers leveraged this fact to ask a simple question: does the amount of sugar consumed during the first few years of life lead to any long-term health effects?
