Does Eating Sugar REALLY Makes Kids Hyper? Expert Explains The Science Behind It

I know I’m not the only one who believes that if I give my child sugar, she will be bouncing off the walls and probably won’t sleep very well.

The idea that kids get hyper from sugar is something that is never really questioned, it’s just an understanding most parents have. But is it even true?

According to the NHS, children aged 7 to 10 should have no more than 24g of free sugars a day, those aged 4 to 6 should have no more than 19g of free sugars a day and for children under the age of 4, it’s recommended they avoid sugar-sweetened drinks and food with sugar added to it. 

However, this isn’t to do with ‘being hyper’.

We looked at research to understand whether it’s just a myth that children shouldn’t have too much sugar or they’ll become hyper, and here’s what we found.

Is it a myth that sugar causes hyperactivity?

Mark Wolraich, professor emeritus in developmental and behavioural paediatrics at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center says it is a myth that sugar causes hyperactivity, according to The Washington Post. 

In fact, in the 1990s Wolraich conducted studies which disproved the idea that sugar causes attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children.

In a randomised controlled trial he found that neither sugar nor artificial sweetener impacts kids’ behaviour, even when they had excessive sugar.

During the trial, families were placed on a different diet for three consecutive three-week periods.

For three weeks periods the families including kids ate either a high sugar diet without artificial sweetener, a low sugar diet with artificial sweetener or a low sugar diet with a placebo.

For each period, the families consumed a diet either high in sucrose with no artificial sweeteners, a diet low in sucrose and containing aspartame (artificial sweetener), or a diet low in sucrose and containing saccharin (the placebo). 

Parents recorded their observation of their child’s behaviour. Parents who had been told their child had ingested large amounts of sugar, although it was in fact a placebo, rated their child as being more hyper.

Additionally, his research was supported by the Centre For Disease Control And Prevention which states that “research doesn’t support the popularly held views that ADHD is caused by eating too much sugar, watching too much television, parenting, or social and environmental factors such as poverty or family chaos.”

Parents who make the association that their kids are effected by sugar intake might want to look at other environmental reasons. For example having cake at a party might make your child hyper, but that’s probably because they’re at a party rather than the cake itself.

So there you have it — there is no scientific evidence that sugar will make your child hyper!