The World Health Organization suggests that no more than 10% of total calories come from sugars. Not surprisingly, Americans far surpass that mark: A 2005 study of U.S. diets found that we consume an average of 22.9 teaspoons of sugar per day, which works out to 16.6% of total calories.

What’s wrong with that, you ask? Diets high in added sugars result in more dental cavities. And researchers strongly suspect – but have not definitively proven – that high consumption is linked to unhealthy weight gain, in part because the processed foods that contain added sugars displace healthier alternatives, like fruits and vegetables.

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., and colleagues from Information Management Services Inc. in Silver Spring, Md., wondered whether intake of added sugars was linked to race, ethnicity, income or educational status. To find out, they analyzed data from 30,805 adults who participated in the 2005 National Health Interview Survey. Among other things, participants were asked how frequently they consumed soda; fruit drinks; doughnuts, sweet rolls and muffins; and cake, cookies and pie. The researchers converted their responses into servings of added sugars using other data on portion sizes.

In the study, added sugars were defined as “white sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, corn syrup, corn-syrup solids, high-fructose corn syrup, malt syrup, maple syrup, pancake syrup and fructose sweetener.” Sugars that occur naturally in milk and fruit were not included in the analysis.

So, who has the biggest sweet tooth?

Generally speaking, men ate more added sugars than women – the average daily intake of added sugars was 18.8 teaspoons for men and 12.7 for women. Young adults ate more than older adults – 18.3 teaspoons per day among people ages 18 to 39, compared with 11.7 teaspoons per day for people who had already reached their 60th birthdays, according to results of the study, published in the August issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Assn.

There were also distinct patterns according to race and ethnicity. Asian Americans ate the least added sugars (12.9 teaspoons per day), followed by Hispanics (14.9 teaspoons per day) and whites (15.3 teaspoons per day). African Americans and Native Americans essentially tied at slightly more than 16 teaspoons of added sugar per day, the study found.

Those with more education and higher household incomes ate less than people who were lower on the income and education scales. The results weren’t completely surprising, the authors noted, since the least expensive foods have the most added sugars. Several previous studies have linked low income to bigger body sizes.

-- Karen Kaplan

Photo: Mmmmm, added sugars ...... Photo credit: Seth Wenig/Associated Press