Professor at the University of Indonesia in the Faculty of Medicine in the Field of Pediatrics, Prof. Dr. dr. Aman Bhakti Pulungan, Sp.A, FAAP, FRCPI prohibits children under 4 years of age from being given sugar consumption.
“If I say that children under 4 years of age, sugar should not be (given) at all,” said Aman at a press conference “Prevent Premature Diabetes in Children and Adolescents” in Central Jakarta, Tuesday.
He said this prohibition was specifically for children with normal body conditions and those who were overweight. However, this does not apply to children who are underweight. The habit of consuming sugar from an early age, according to a pediatrician, can cause diabetes in children which can carry over into adulthood.
“Because they are not perfect metabolism,” he added.
Unlike fat, Amin said the fat content can still be given to children, with the note not exceeding the recommended number of calories.
“Sugar really must be considered, fat is okay but still in the corridor of the number of calories needed,” he said.
Meanwhile, children aged 2-3 years need 1,125 kilo calories per day, while children aged 4-6 years need 1,600 kilo calories per day.
He also added that diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disease that is chronic in nature and has the potential to interfere with the growth and development of children.
There are two types of diabetes that are most often found in children, namely type-1 DM with low insulin levels due to damage to pancreatic beta cells, and type-2 DM caused by insulin resistance, where insulin levels in the blood are normal.
It is known that the prevalence of type-1 diabetes mellitus in children has increased 70-fold from 2010 to 2023.
In 2010 the prevalence of diabetes mellitus cases in children in Indonesia was only 0.028 per 100 thousand people. Then, in 2023 the prevalence of diabetes mellitus cases will be 2 per 100 thousand people.
Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease that is chronic in nature and has the potential to interfere with the development of children.
“Children can get diabetes, there are still many people who think that diabetes is just a hereditary disease, even though diabetes can infect anyone,” added Aman.
This news has been published on Antaranews.com with the title: Doctors say children under 4 years are prohibited from consuming sugar
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