Dietary patterns begin in early childhood and can continue into adulthood. Thus, the early years are crucial for nutrition interventions and habit formation. 1 Infants have a natural affinity to sweet foods overall, and preand postnatal exposures of added sugar are important. 2,3 Genetic, environmental and cultural influences can increase preferences for sugary foods in children. 2 However, there is a lack of high-quality research data on the dietary intake of sugars among young children, especially among infants and toddlers. 4 Given that cardiometabolic risk markers may begin to emerge in children as young as 3 years of age, 5 it is important to understand patterns of sugar intake and explore associations between intake of sugar and cardiometabolic risk markers (including anthropometric measures) in early life. This information can help inform policy development and programs for behaviour change intervention focused on early prevention.Adverse effects of excessive sugar intake are a cause for global public health concern in all age groups. 6 Overconsumption of sugar has been associated with increased risk of excessive weight gain, dental decay, poor diet quality and nutritional inadequacy in children and adolescents younger than 19 years. 4,7,8 Excessive sugar intake has also been implicated in the development of

There is limited research on the intake of non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) among preschool-aged children. Canada’s Food Guide suggests limiting intake of NNS for all population groups and Health Canada recommends that young children (<2 years) avoid consuming beverages containing NNS. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency and type of non-nutritive sweetener (NNS) intake in preschool-aged children participating in the Guelph Family Health Study pilots. Parents (n = 78 families) completed 3-day food records (n = 112 children; n = 55 females, n = 57 males; 3.6 years ± 1.3). Nineteen children (17%) reported consumption of foods or beverages containing NNS. Food sources with NNS included: freezies, oral nutritional supplements, flavored water, carbonated drinks, sugar free jam and protein powder. The majority of NNS contained in these foods were identified as stevia leaf extract, acesulfame K, sucralose, monk fruit extract and aspartame. Future research should continue to study NNS intake patterns longitudinally in children and examine the association of NNS intake with diet quality and health outcomes.