Prospective Associations of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption During Adolescence with Body Composition and Bone Mass at Early Adulthood.

Background: Adolescents have a higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) than other age groups, but little is known of the impact of SSB intake during adolescence on body composition and bone mass in early adulthood.

Objectives: Associations of SSB intake from 14 to 20 y with fat, lean, and bone mass at 20 y of age were evaluated.

Methods: Study participants were 1137 offspring (562 females) from the Raine Study. Food intake, including SSB consumption in servings/d (1 serving = 250 mL), was estimated using FFQs at 14, 17, and 20 y of age. DXA scanning at 20 y measured whole body fat mass, lean mass, and bone mineral content (BMC). Using latent class growth analysis, 4 SSB intake trajectory classes were identified: consistently low (n = 540, intakes mostly <0.5 serving/d), increasing (n = 65), decreasing (n = 258), and consistently high (n = 274, intakes mostly >1.3 servings/d).

Results: Median total SSB intake was 0.8, 0.7, and 0.5 serving/d, and median carbonated SSB intake was 0.3, 0.3, and 0.4 serving/d at 14, 17, and 20 y, respectively. Mean ± SD BMI (in kg/m2) was 23.9 ± 4.2 at 20 y. After adjustment for covariates including sex, demographic, energy intake, and maternal factors, individuals with "consistently high" SSB consumption had significantly higher total body fat mass at 20 y than those with "consistently low" consumption (23.3 ± 0.6 compared with 21.2 ± 0.4 kg, P = 0.004), which remained significant after further adjustment for "Healthy" and "Western" dietary patterns (23.2 ± 0.6 compared with 21.2 ± 0.4 kg, P = 0.011). No significant associations were observed between SSB intake trajectory classes and lean body mass or BMC at 20 y.

Conclusions: In this cohort, consistently higher consumption of SSBs in adolescence and early adulthood are associated with increased fat mass but not with bone mass at 20 y of age.