Milk provides a world of goodness for our children. It’s packed with dairy goodness and is loaded with vitamins and minerals. There’s calcium for growing bones, protein and carbohydrates for developing bodies, and so much more. But what is milk powder made of? And did you know about the added sugars hiding in your child’s milk?
Many parents limit their children’s consumption of sugar, excessive sugar intake has been linked to obesity and other unhealthy lifestyle illnesses. So the thought of added sugars in our children’s milk can be quite alarming. However, there is good reason to be concerned.
According to the latest statistics from the National Health and Morbidity Survey, more than 6% of children in Malaysia under five years of age have been identified as overweight. While almost 12% of children and teenagers aged below 18 were either overweight or obese.
While many parents may think chubby children are cute, obesity later in life can lead to a host of health problems. It is linked with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, gall bladder disease and more.
Children do not need excessive added sugars. So why should there be added sugars in your child’s formulated milk powder which he consumes frequently?
What Are Added Sugars?
Added sugars are sugars and syrups that are added to food and beverages when they are processed or prepared. This does not include naturally occurring sugars such as those found in milk and fruits.
How Much Sugar Is Too Much?
Malaysian pre-schoolers consumes an average of 7.6 teaspoons of sugar daily. This is far beyond daily recommendation.
Malaysian Dietary Guidelines (MDG) for Children and Adolescents 2013 recommends that children aged two to six should have no more than three teaspoons of added sugars per day.
With an already high consumption of sugar among our children, imagine what will happen when they drink milk with added sugars!
Why Are Excessive Added Sugars Bad?
A little sugar can help improve the taste of our food. After all, who doesn’t love a little sweetness? But too much sugar can have a negative impact on our health – and the health of our children.
Sugar has been known to:
- Increase the likelihood of obesity
- Have a negative impact on taste preference – developing a “sweet tooth”
- Also increase the risk of dental cavities
Where Are the Added Sugars Hiding?
You may not know it, but added sugars are in many of the food products we consume. Added sugars are commonplace, and they can have many tricky names. Brown sugar, white sugar, and glucose are obvious. But what about maltodextrin? Or glucose syrup solid? Or sucrose? These are also added sugars too.
Here’s a list of common names for added sugars:
- Maltodextrin
- Glucose Syrup Solid
- Sucrose
- Brown Sugar
- Corn Syrup Solid
- Dextrose
- Glucose
- Fructose
- Maltose
Did You Know?
Lactose is a type of natural sugar found in milk. But if Lactose is listed in the ingredients section, it is being added into the product!
Learn How to Check for Added Sugars in 2 Easy Steps:
Parents, you can take action to avoid giving your child added sugars. All it takes is two easy steps.
Step 1: Look at the ingredients section on the product label.
Step 2: Identify some of the common examples with our handy list above.
Did You Know?
The higher up on the list an ingredient appears, the more of it there is in the product. For example, if you see “maltodextrin” as the first or second ingredient on the list, that means the product is mostly made of added sugars!
To ensure that you give milk with no added sugars to your child, you may choose Anmum Essential. Anmum Essential is the only formulated milk powder for children with 0% Added Sugars.¹ 100% Goodness of Milk.
Don’t be afraid to give "less" to your kids, because you’re helping them get more out of life.
Anmum Essential now also has Mind-Q Connect, contains DHA and 2x more GA® (Gangliosides).² So parents, maximise your child’s brain cells connections today with proper stimulation together with good nutrition.
Reference:
¹Sucrose, Glucose Syrup Solid, Corn Syrup Solid, Brown Sugar, Dextrose, Lactose, Fructose, Honey and White Sugar are defined as ‘sugars’ and ‘added sugars’ under CODEX Standard 212-1999 and CAC/GL23-1997. CODEX develops harmonised international food standards guidelines and code of practices.
Under Malaysia Food Regulations 1985, Sucrose, Brown Sugar, Dextrose, Glucose, Fructose, Honey are defined as sweetening substances.
Under Australia New Zealand Food Standard Code – Standard 1.1.2, Glucose Syrup, Maltodextrin and similar products are defined as ‘sugars’
²Compared to previous formulation.
