A NEW STUDY of global beverage consumption has revealed substantial differences in the drinks consumed by different demographic groups in 185 countries around the world.

The data, derived from the Global Dietary Database project, is one of the most comprehensive standardised methods for tracking beverage consumption to date.

The research is based on data from 2015 derived from more than 1,100 surveys representing 6.78 billion people worldwide, as well as data on beverage availability.

It found that globally, beverage consumption was generally highest among younger people, those who have attained a higher education level and those living in urban areas.

“These preliminary data derived from the Global Dietary Database project can help inform nutrition transitions over time, the impacts of these beverages on global health, and targeted dietary policy to improve diet and health,” said lead study author Laura Lara-Castor of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

Sugar-sweetened beverage and fruit juice intake was found to be highest in the Latin American region where commercial and homemade sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit drinks are widely consumed.

The researchers found that consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages was highest in Mexico, where the average adult drinks more than 19 ounces per day.

It was followed by Suriname and Jamaica, where adults drank nearly 15 ounces per day. At the opposite end of the scale, the lowest intake was in China, Indonesia and Burkina Faso.

Meanwhile, fruit juice intake was highest in Colombia, where about 11 ounces per day was consumed, followed by the Dominican Republic (nearly 10 ounces per day), with the lowest intakes occurring in China, Portugal and Japan.

The data also revealed that milk consumption was highest in high-income regions, where dairy-farming is more widespread.

According to the research, the top milk-consuming country was Sweden, where more than 10 ounces are consumed per day.

It was followed by Iceland and Finland, where adults drank just over 9 ounces per day, on average, with China, Togo and Sudan showing the lowest average milk intake.

The research will be presented in full later today at Nutrition 2019, an annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition in Baltimore.