Singaporeans cut sugar intake when asked to sweeten beverages themselves

In an astonishing move, most of the Singaporeans opted for no sugar drinks when they were asked to sweeten their beverages on their own.

Sugar consumption fell by about a third at Singapore Polytechnic's (SP) Food Court 3 since this interesting initiative started last August, reported the Malay Mail online.

Ma Hong Yen, who is employed by food court operator Food Paradise saw a major dip in sugar consumption, when she placed sugar on the side of freshly brewed coffee and tea, instead of adding in it.

"This has helped cut sugar consumption significantly... Now, even the students drink their beverages kosong (sugar free) more frequently," the the Malay Mail quoted Ma as saying.

Food Court 3 is one of the leading food courts supporting the Health Promotion Board's (HPB) healthier drinks policy, which promotes serving freshly brewed drinks without sugar.

To speed up the war against diabetes, all government offices, as well as some premises such as parks, sports facilities, and community centers, will follow suit from May.

Even the beverages from vending machines, food and beverage outlets and retail stores have been asked to lower their sugar content level as per the guidelines advocated by the Healthier Choice Symbol.

As per studies, providing sugar as an option, rather than including it in beverages, help to reduce its intake.

A whopping 75 percent drop in the amount of sugar intake was witnesses in a trial conducted at a public canteen on the HPB's premises by this method.

Most of the people used only half a teaspoon of sugar per hot drink, compared to two teaspoons previously.

The Singapore government is also trying to study the sugar-reduction measures that have gained success in other countries, such as the United Kingdom's "traffic light" labelling system.

Even the French authorities use a colour-coded scheme, to denote nutritional content of various food items.