Greek teenagers ‘drink’ less sugar than EU counterparts

Greek teenagers do not have as much of a sweet tooth for sugar-sweetened soft drinks like the majority of their European counterparts, with an enviable ranking along with Romania, Latvia, Finland, Lithuania and Estonia.

According to the latest data published by Eurostat, less than 5% of Greek teenagers (15 and over) consumed sugar-sweetened soft drinks on a daily basis.

The highest consumption numbers among the EU Member States,  of people who reported that they drank sugar-sweetened soft drinks at least once a day, were recorded in Belgium (20%), followed by Malta, Germany, Hungary, Poland and Bulgaria (all around 12%).

In 2019, 9% of people aged 15 and over in the EU drank sugar-sweetened soft drinks daily, while 6% drank such beverages 4-6 times a week and 19% drank these 1-3 times a week.

Daily consumption of sugar-sweetened soft drinks was more common for men than for women (12% of men vs. 7% of women).

In addition, the older the age group, the lower the frequency of consumption of these beverages: the highest share was recorded among those aged 15 to 24 (14%), while those aged 65 to 74 and people aged 75 and over had the lowest shares (around 5%).