There is another reason to keep sugar out of reach: It’s being linked to ‘fatty’ liver among children and adults. Sugar, often called a white poison, was the cause of a public outcry recently as a global study showed that infant formula and chocolates sold in India had high levels of ‘added sugars’ compared to other countries. In a meeting held in Mumbai, paediatricians and hepatologists discussed how high intake of sugar is linked to fatty liver in children as young as nine. Sugar is converted into fat in the liver, and in overweight or obese individuals, this fat fails to get metabolised due to conditions like insulin resistance. Traditionally, fatty liver was associated with alcoholism, but now it is increasingly being seen in non-alcoholic individuals, leading to the term non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). A study conducted in Mumbai found that 62% of overweight or obese children had fatty liver. The rise in paediatric obesity, lack of exercise, and easy access to junk food have contributed to this increase. The Indian Academy of Paediatrics recommends that sugar should not be introduced to children until the age of two. Poor nutrition during pregnancy has also been linked to a higher risk of fatty liver in offspring. The best way to reduce fatty liver in its early stages is to cut down on sugar consumption. Physical activity has also been found to be effective in reducing fatty liver.