Sugar Consumption Per Capita by Country

Sugar contains carbohydrates and as this name implies, is composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose, fructose and galactose. Sugars are found in the tissues of most plants but are only present in sufficient concentrations for efficient extraction in sugarcane and sugar beet. A great expansion in its production took place in the 18th century, with the setting up of sugar plantations in the West Indies and Americas. The world produced about 168 million tonnes of sugar in 2011. The average person consumes about 24 kilograms of sugar each year, equivalent to over 260 food calories per person per day. In modern times it has been questioned whether a diet high in sugars, especially refined sugars, is bad for health. Sugar has been linked to obesity and suspected of being implicated in diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia, macular degeneration and tooth decay.