Is Soft Drink Consumption Linked to Higher Body Mass Index and Energy Intake Among Adults in Mauritius?

Abstract

The World Health Organisation recommends people to keep their calorie intake from soft drink (SD) less than 10% of their daily calorie intake. Even though, calorie intake from soft drink consumption is low, there is an increase in the frequency of consumption. Also, besides, it is well understood that change in weight is not only dependent on soft drink consumption but also factors such as calorie intake and physical activity. The objective of this study is to investigate SD consumption and its association with BMI, physical activity and calorie intake among adults. 511 adults aged 20-60 years (208 male and 303 female) were recruited. The questionnaire used to elicit information included 3-day 24-hour dietary recall, physical activity habits and soft drink consumption. Anthropometric measurements (height, weight and waist circumference) were also taken. The data was analysed using SPSS version 2.0. Chi-square tests, Person coefficient test, and Spearman’s correlation tests were used to infer any relationships between variables. The mean daily calorie intake among the population is 2501 ± 86.46 Kcal/day. Energy intake by both genders is within the range recommended by USDA (males: 2182 ± 33.48 Kcal/day and female: 1925 ± 28.55 Kcal/day). BMI is slightly higher among female 25.00 ± kg/m^2 as compared to male 24.73 kg/m^2. Mean Energy intake from SD is found to be 88.57 ± 3.37 Kcal/day that accounts for 3.54% of the daily calorie intake and hence in line with the WHO recommendation. A significant association is seen between SD consumption and BMI (P= 0.02), however obesity and overweight is seen to be independent of SD consumption. Furthermore, a positive correlation wasfound between SD consumption and physical activity (P=0.01) and it is observed that 26.3 % of the population who had a sedentary lifestyle are overweight. No association was found between calorie intake and SD consumption (P= 0.731) since the percentage calorie from SD does not exceed the recommendation of WHO. A significant relationship is found between SD consumption and BMI. However, it is observed that physical activity has a higher influence on BMI independent of calorie intake and soft drink consumption. Even though soft drink is reported herein not influence on the prevalence of obesity and overweight, long-term soft drink consumption can result in health problems related to obesity.

Association between Shift Work Schedules and Cardiovascular Events in a Multi-Ethnic Cohort

“…Body mass index (BMI) was derived from height and weight. BMI was treated as a binary variable and categorized into <25 kg/m 2 (non-overweight) and ≥25 kg/m 2 (overweight) [16]. Similarly, hypertension was also treated as a binary variable and categorized into a self-reported status of yes or no.…”

Dietary patterns, body mass index, physical activity level and energy intake among the female elderly population in Mauritius

“…40 Regarding beverage consumption (soft drinks and tea/coffee), the positive correlation between BMI reported in this study corresponds with a study on Mauritian women whereby higher intake of soft drinks resulted in high BMI. 3 Another study demonstrated that soft drink consumption was linked to an increased risk of abdominal obesity over a 10-year period. 41 However, in one study, consuming one or more portions of tea per day was linked to obesity, but the link was not statistically significant.…”

“…2 Mauritius, an island nation, located in the southwest Indian Ocean, has a mixed economic system and is a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic country. 3 According to the Worldometers' elaboration of the most recent UN data, Mauritius' population is 1,275,555, as at 20 th April 2022 (https://www.worldometers.info/) 4 including 95,635 (https:// countrymeters.info/) people above 64 years old. 5 According to a national assessment of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) conducted in Mauritius in 2015, 19.1% of people were obese.…”

“…5 According to a national assessment of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) conducted in Mauritius in 2015, 19.1% of people were obese. 3 Healthy aging is defined by the World Health Organization as "the process of developing and maintaining functional ability that enables wellbeing in old age". 6 Healthy aging focuses on health-span rather than lifespan, while some definitions refer to aging in the absence of illness.…”