High Sugary Drinks in Pregnancy Increase Health Risks

Researchers examined the high sugary drinks consumption pattern of pregnant women in Shanghai as well as the health implications for both mothers and their offspring in a new study that was published in Nutrients.

Context

Health concerns have been raised by the increase in the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) and non-sugar-sweetened beverages (NSS), particularly among expectant mothers and their unborn children.

Overindulgence in sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) can lead to dental issues, weight gain, and a higher chance of developing chronic illnesses including diabetes and hypertension.

Drinking a lot of sugar-filled beverages during pregnancy increases the risk of preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), and long-term harm to the fetus, including early birth and birth defects.

SSB consumption during pregnancy must be controlled for both the moms’ and the unborn child’s safety. Before, packaged sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) were evaluated, but nothing was known about freshly made, non-sugar-sweetened beverages.

Concerning the study
Researchers examined whether high beverage consumption in pregnant women is associated with a higher risk of unfavorable mother-and-child outcomes in this prospective cohort study.

Using a multi-stage random selection technique, the researchers selected participants for surveys from 16 districts in Shanghai between April and June of 2022 and 2023. Pregnant women who were able to walk freely and lived in community settings for more than six months in the previous year qualified as eligible individuals.

Every Shanghai district was divided into five zonal zones by the researchers, who then chose two towns at random for each zone and thirty pregnant women in various stages of each town. They determined the duration of pregnancy in accordance with the norms set forth by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).

They conducted in-person interviews and sent out survey questionnaires on a variety of demographic topics, such as age, level of education attained, employment status, marital status, household income, and frequency of beverage intake and alcohol consumption prior to pregnancy.

With choices including never, once to three times a month, once to three times a week, four to seven times a week, and more than once a day, participants noted how often they drank each type of beverage during the preceding month.

The beverages were categorized by the researchers as follows: sugar-sweetened tea, including freshly made milk-based tea (STB), lactic acid bacteria beverages (LBB), juice beverages (JB), carbonated beverages (CB), vegetable protein-type beverages (VPB), pure fruit juices (PFJ), and NSS.

While NSS was the only beverage type included in SSB, additional beverage kinds such as PFJ, CB, VPB, JB, LBB, SDB, and STB were included in total beverage intake (TB).

In the twelve months after the survey, they gathered follow-up data on newborn births. By March 31, 2024, every pregnant female had given birth. To find the odds ratios (OR) for analysis, they ran logistic regressions.

In summary
The results of the study indicate that while NSS has a greater effect on the risks of neonatal LGA and macrosomia, excessive beverage consumption during pregnancy increases the risk of gestational hypertension and diabetes.

Women who consume sugar-filled drinks four or more times a week are significantly more likely to develop these illnesses. Healthcare professionals should suggest dietary adjustments that minimize the use of SSB and NSS drinks during pregnancy in order to lower these risks.

Preventive alcohol management can improve maternal health and reduce pregnancy complications. The identification and management of high-risk pregnancies can be facilitated by incorporating these findings into clinical practice.

For more information: Association of Beverage Consumption during Pregnancy with Adverse Maternal and Offspring Outcomes, Nutrients, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16152412