Changing the Default: A Policy Roadmap for Reducing Added Sugars in Children’s Diets
Open Access DepositedAmerican children today consume far too much added sugar, and it is harming their health. The 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans set the most ambitious target yet for reducing children's added sugar intake, recommending that those under age 11 avoid these sugars entirely. These reduction targets are ambitious because added sugars are not a single, niche ingredient. Rather, they exist in multiple forms and are everywhere: in schools, in child care, and in the everyday staples families rely on – from breakfast cereals and bread to yogurt and condiments.
As a result, reaching these targets will not happen through nutrition guidance alone. What is needed is a sustained effort to holistically change the food environment parents and their children navigate, as well as the structural forces that make high added sugar intake so persistent. The policy recommendations in this brief give federal, state, and local policymakers a roadmap to change the food environment, organized around three central pillars: setting tighter limits for added sugars in the settings where children learn and play; reshaping supply and demand for added sugars in the food system; and giving families better information about added sugars in the products they purchase.
Notice to Authors
If you are the author of this work and you have any questions about the information on this page, please use the Contact form to get in touch with us.
| Thumbnail | Title | Date Uploaded | Visibility | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Global_Food_Institute_Reducing_Added_Sugars_in_Children_s_Diets.pdf | 2026-06-15 | Open Access |
|