How Much Sugar Per Day? Free Sugars, Daily Limits, and Easy Ways to Cut Down

Sugar is everywhere, from the obvious places like sweets and fizzy drinks to less obvious ones like breakfast cereals, sauces, and flavored yogurts. Most people know they "should eat less sugar," but it can be hard to know how much is too much, or which sugars actually matter.

This guide explains the difference between free sugars and natural sugars, the recommended daily limits, how to read sugar on food labels, and simple swaps that make cutting down easier.

This article is for general educational purposes and is not medical advice. Please see our medical disclaimer.

Why Cutting Down on Sugar Matters

The NHS explains that eating too much sugar can make you gain weight and can also cause tooth decay. Too much sugar can contribute to taking in too many calories, and being overweight increases the risk of health problems such as heart disease, some cancers, and type 2 diabetes.

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports solid evidence that keeping free sugars below 10% of total energy intake reduces the risk of overweight, obesity, and tooth decay. For more on how sugar affects teeth, see this guide to tooth decay and cavities on our sister site.

Free Sugars vs. Natural Sugars

Not all sugar is treated the same way in health advice. According to the NHS, free sugars are:

• any sugars added to food or drinks;
• sugars in honey, syrups (such as maple, agave, and golden syrup), and nectars;
• sugars in unsweetened fruit juices, vegetable juices, and smoothies.

Free sugars are found in foods such as sweets, cakes, biscuits, chocolate, and some fizzy drinks and juice drinks. These are the sugary foods we should cut down on.

Sugars also occur naturally in whole fruit, vegetables, and milk. The NHS says we do not need to cut down on these types of sugars. However, they are included in the "total sugars" figure on food labels, which is why reading labels carefully matters.

How Much Sugar Is Too Much?

The NHS recommends that free sugars should not make up more than 5% of the energy you get from food and drink each day. In practice, that means:

• Adults: no more than 30 g of free sugars a day, roughly 7 sugar cubes.
• Children aged 7 to 10: no more than 24 g a day, about 6 sugar cubes.
• Children aged 4 to 6: no more than 19 g a day, about 5 sugar cubes.

The WHO recommends that adults and children reduce free sugars to less than 10% of their total energy intake, and notes that a further reduction to below 5%, or roughly 25 g (6 teaspoons) a day, would provide additional health benefits.

To put that in perspective, the NHS points out that a single can of cola can contain as much as 9 cubes of sugar, which is more than the recommended daily limit for adults.

How to Read Sugar on Food Labels

The NHS explains that food labels show "total sugars," which includes both free sugars and naturally occurring sugars. To judge whether a food is high or low in sugar, look at the amount per 100 g:

• High: more than 22.5 g of total sugars per 100 g.
• Low: 5 g or less of total sugars per 100 g.
• Medium: anything in between.

Labels with color coding make this easier: red means high, amber means medium, and green means low. The ingredients list can also help you spot added sugars, which may appear under names such as syrup, honey, or nectar.

The WHO also notes that much of the sugar people eat today is "hidden" in processed foods that are not usually seen as sweets, such as sauces and ready meals, so checking labels is worthwhile.

Easy Ways to Cut Down on Sugar

The NHS suggests a number of practical swaps:

Drinks

• Swap sugary fizzy drinks or squash for water, lower-fat milk, or sugar-free, diet, or no-added-sugar drinks.
• Limit fruit juice and smoothies to no more than 150 ml a day in total, since even unsweetened versions are sugary.
• If you like fizzy drinks, try diluting no-added-sugar squash with sparkling water.
• If you take sugar in hot drinks, reduce it gradually until you can cut it out, or switch to a sweetener.

Food

• Instead of jam, honey, syrup, or chocolate spread on toast, try sliced banana, a reduced-sugar jam, or lower-fat cream cheese.
• Choose unsweetened wholegrain breakfast cereals that are not frosted or coated, and add fruit for sweetness.
• Choose tinned fruit in juice rather than syrup.
• Try reducing the sugar in your own recipes, which works for most things.
• Check nutrition labels and choose reduced- or lower-sugar versions.

Water is the simplest swap of all. Our guide on how much water you need has tips for drinking more, and our guide to dietary fiber covers filling, lower-sugar food swaps.

Tips to Make It Stick

• Cut down gradually. Many people find that, over a few weeks, foods start to taste sweet enough with less sugar.
• Focus on drinks first. Sugary drinks are an easy place to make a big difference.
• Keep sweet treats to mealtimes. This also helps protect your teeth from frequent sugar exposure.
• Plan snacks. Keep fruit, nuts, or plain yogurt handy for when hunger strikes.

My Take

The thing that changed my thinking most was realizing how much sugar can come from drinks. Switching to water and having fruit juice only occasionally made a bigger difference than cutting out the occasional dessert. I also found the 22.5 g per 100 g label rule genuinely useful in the supermarket, especially for yogurts and cereals that look healthy but are surprisingly sweet.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much sugar should I eat a day?

The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30 g of free sugars a day, roughly 7 sugar cubes. Children need less.

Is the sugar in fruit bad for you?

The NHS says we do not need to cut down on sugars found naturally in whole fruit, vegetables, and milk. Fruit juice and smoothies are different, so limit them to 150 ml a day.

Is honey healthier than sugar?

Honey counts as a free sugar, so it should be included in your daily limit just like table sugar.

What counts as a high-sugar food?

A food with more than 22.5 g of total sugars per 100 g is considered high in sugar. 5 g or less per 100 g is low.

Are sweeteners a good alternative?

The NHS lists switching to a sweetener as one option for reducing sugar in hot drinks. Many people also find they can simply reduce sugar gradually until they no longer miss it.

The Bottom Line

Free sugars, including added sugars, honey, syrups, and fruit juice, are the ones to cut down on. The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30 g a day, and the WHO advises keeping free sugars well below 10% of daily energy.

Start with drinks, read labels using the 22.5 g and 5 g per 100 g guide, and make small swaps that you can keep up over time.

Sources

• NHS: Sugar: the facts
• World Health Organization: WHO calls on countries to reduce sugars intake among adults and children