Sugar Does Not Make Children Hyper

May 7, 2012 at 7:00 pm Chad Upton

By Chad Upton | Editor

I’ve only been a dad for a few weeks, so I can’t provide any anecdotal evidence on this one. Thankfully, a much more scientific source is available. The British Medical Journal has published a study that concludes: sugar does not make children hyperactive.

Of course, we’ve all heard this myth. There are even some parents who give their kids pixie stix, hoping it will give them more energy:

However, the results from at least 12 double blind randomized controlled trials have shown that there is no noticeable difference in a child’s behavior regardless of how much sugar they have consumed. Even kids who are considered “sensitive” to sugar or have attention-deficit/hyperactive disorder are not more hyper after consuming sugar.

There does appear to be a placebo effect though. The study indicated parents do rate their children as more hyperactive after their child has consumed what appears to be a sugary drink, even if the drink was in fact sugar free.

That’s food for thought.

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Image: Louise Ferrari (cc)

Source: British Medical Journal

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Entry filed under: Despite Popular Belief. Tags: energy, hyper, hyperactive, kids, pixie, pixie stix, sticks, stix, sugar, toddlers and tiaras.