Sugar

📖 In short

Sugar is a sweet-tasting substance we put in tea, juice, sweets and cakes. Most of the sugar we use comes from tall sugar cane or from the roots of the sugar beet plant.

🤩 Did you know?

The world produces more than 100 million tonnes of sugar every year.
Raw sugar is 97 to 99% sucrose.
Sugar cane grows in hot, rainy countries.
Dates are one of the sweetest fruits and the richest in natural sugar.

🔎 Find out more

🌟 From cane to sugar

Sugar cane is cut and pressed at the factory, giving a sweet juice. Then the juice is boiled until the water evaporates and sugar crystals appear, and these are cleaned until they turn white.

🔍 Sugar in nature

Sugar is found in nature too: in fruit like dates, grapes and apples, in honey and in milk. This natural sugar comes with useful vitamins and fiber.

💡 Quick energy

Sugar gives the body quick energy, but it runs out quickly too. Eating too much causes tooth decay and obesity.

🎯 Protect your teeth

The germs in your mouth love sugar. They eat it and make acid that makes holes in teeth. So eat fewer sweets, drink water instead of sugary drinks, and brush your teeth after eating.

📸 More pictures

🧩 Test yourself

1 Which plant do we mostly get sugar from?

2 What does eating too much sugar cause?

3 The world produces more than ?? million tonnes of sugar every year.

4 Which picture shows “Sugar”?

🫀 Discover more

📷 Picture sources: Wikimedia Commons

Romain Behar · Public domain
Moe Rubenzahl · CC BY-SA 4.0