Life is sweet: candy consumption and longevity
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Consumption of candy was associated with greater longevity in this study. Men who indulged lived almost a year longer, up to age 95, than did abstainers.
We could not differentiate between consumption of sugar candy and chocolate in our study. One plausible explanation for our observations may be the presence of antioxidant phenols in chocolate. A 41 g piece of chocolate contains about the same amount of phenol as a glass of red wine, and alcohol consumption, in moderation, lowers the risk of coronary heart disease.3 Direct evidence regarding the antioxidant properties of chocolate also exists. Cacao liquor phenol can inhibit reactive oxygen species, as well as modulate immune function.4 Additionally, cacao powder extract is a powerful antioxidant for oxidation of low density lipoprotein cholesterol.5 These beneficial effects of chocolate may decrease the risk of heart disease and cancer.
Unfortunately, greater consumption of candy was not associated with progressively lower mortality. Mortality was lowest among those consuming candy 1-3 times a month and highest among those indulging this habit three or more times a week. Non-consumers of candy, however, still had the highest mortality overall. As with most things in life, moderation seems to be paramount.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC28747/Conflicting results indicate that eating patterns including candy were associated with increased likelihood of weight gain in adults (20–22) and children (23) in cross-sectional studies. However, candy was categorized with other “sweets,” such as desserts, sweetened beverages, or sugars, which limits the conclusions specific to candy. Other studies showed that increased consumption of sweets has no relation or an inverse relation with body weight or weight gain (24, 25).
Several cross-sectional studies examined the frequency of candy intake on health measures. One study in nearly 6000 adults found that increased frequency of candy consumption was associated with higher energy intakes but not with objective measures of obesity or select cardiovascular risk factors (26). In addition, no associations with measures of body weight status or cardiovascular risk factors were found in a post hoc analysis of the 8% of adults reporting candy intake more than once per day (26). Another study in >1000 adults without cardiovascular disease or diabetes that examined frequency and quantity of chocolate intake found, after adjusting for energy intake, physical activity, and other potential confounders, that adults consuming chocolate more frequently had a lower BMI than did those who consumed chocolate less often (27). Thus, cross-sectional research evidence challenges the view that candy consumption in children and adults is associated with risk of cardiovascular disease or obesity.
Building on the evidence from cross-sectional research, results were recently reported from the first longitudinal study examining associations between consumption of candy during childhood with health endpoints in adulthood (28). Using data from the Bogalusa Heart Study, researchers followed the dietary habits, including candy consumption (chocolate, nonchocolate candy, and chewing gum), of 355 10-y-old children from 1973 to 1984 for a period of 23 y. Results indicated that there was no association between the group’s candy consumption during childhood and their BMI and cardiovascular risk factors as adults, suggesting that candy consumption in childhood was not predictive of health risks later in life (28).
A pilot study in overweight and obese premenopausal women evaluated the effects of a reduced-calorie diet, which included a daily dark chocolate snack or a nonchocolate candy snack, on body weight and body composition measures (3). Both groups experienced decreases in body weight, hip and waist circumference, fat mass, and body fat percentage, suggesting that improvements in body weight and body composition can be achieved with a reduced-calorie diet, even when a daily candy treat is included.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4288276/ -
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