Prospective Associations of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption During Adolescence with Body Composition and Bone Mass at Early Adulthood

Background Adolescents have a higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) than other age groups, but little is known of the impact of SSB intake during adolescence on body composition and bone mass in early adulthood. Objectives Associations of SSB intake from 14 to 20 y with fat, lean, and bone mass at 20 y of age were evaluated. Methods Study participants were 1137 offspring (562 females) from the Raine Study. Food intake, including SSB consumption in servings/d (1 serving = 250 mL), was estimated using FFQs at 14, 17, and 20 y of age. DXA scanning at 20 y measured whole body fat mass, lean mass, and bone mineral content (BMC). Using latent class growth analysis, 4 SSB intake trajectory classes were identified: consistently low (n = 540, intakes mostly <0.5 serving/d), increasing (n = 65), decreasing (n = 258), and consistently high (n = 274, intakes mostly >1.3 servings/d). Results Median total SSB intake was 0.8, 0.7, and 0.5 serving/d, and median carbonated SSB intake was 0.3, 0.3, and 0.4 serving/d at 14, 17, and 20 y, respectively. Mean +/- SD BMI (in kg/m(2)) was 23.9 +/- 4.2 at 20 y. After adjustment for covariates including sex, demographic, energy intake, and maternal factors, individuals with consistently high SSB consumption had significantly higher total body fat mass at 20 y than those with consistently low consumption (23.3 +/- 0.6 compared with 21.2 +/- 0.4 kg, P = 0.004), which remained significant after further adjustment for Healthy and Western dietary patterns (23.2 +/- 0.6 compared with 21.2 +/- 0.4 kg, P = 0.011). No significant associations were observed between SSB intake trajectory classes and lean body mass or BMC at 20 y. Conclusions In this cohort, consistently higher consumption of SSBs in adolescence and early adulthood are associated with increased fat mass but not with bone mass at 20 y of age.

Automated summary

The study found that consistent consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages during adolescence and early adulthood is associated with increased fat mass but not bone mass at 20 years of age.