Research
Adherence
Global sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) intake among adults increased by 16% (0.37 servings/week) between 1990 and 2018, with the most dramatic increases occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa (+81.9%) and specific high-population countries like Nigeria and Ethiopia.
Track your weekly SSB servings. If you live in or travel to regions with rapidly rising intake (like Sub-Saharan Africa or parts of Asia), be aware that marketing is aggressively targeting these demographics. Aim to keep added sugars <5-10% of daily calories as recommended by national guidelines.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Globally, SSB intake increased from 1990 to 2018 by +0.37 servings/week ([95% UI 0.29, 0.47]; +15.9%)... Overall, from 1990 to 2018, the largest increase was in Sub-Saharan Africa (+2.99 [2.26, 3.89]; +81.9%)
Why this rating
Large-scale observational study using harmonized data from 451 surveys across 185 countries.
Source
Sugar-sweetened beverage intakes among adults between 1990 and 2018 in 185 countries
Laura Lara-Castor et al. · Nature Communications · 2023
DOI 10.1038/s41467-023-41269-8
cross_sectionalCited 114×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- SSB intake is inversely correlated with national Socio-demographic Development Index (SDI) by 2018, meaning higher national development is associated with lower national SSB intake, though within lower-SDI nations, higher individual education correlates with higher intake.Good
- SSB intake is significantly higher in urban vs. rural areas globally (57.3% higher), with the largest disparities in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, while being lower in urban areas of the Middle East/North Africa.Good
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