Most health authorities recommend no more than 25 to 36 grams of added sugar per day for adults, depending on sex. That’s 6 to 9 teaspoons, and the average American consumes roughly double that amount. Here’s what the major guidelines say, how to track your intake, and why it matters.
The Official Daily Limits
Three major guidelines shape the recommendations you’ll see most often, and they largely agree with each other.
The American Heart Association sets the most specific targets: no more than 36 grams (9 teaspoons) per day for men, and no more than 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day for women. In calorie terms, that’s 150 calories from added sugar for men and 100 for women.
The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the World Health Organization both recommend keeping added sugar below 10% of your total daily calories. On a 2,000-calorie diet, that works out to about 50 grams, or 12.5 teaspoons. The WHO goes further, noting that dropping below 5% of calories (roughly 25 grams) provides additional health benefits. For most people trying to set a concrete daily target, the AHA’s 25 to 36 gram range is the most practical benchmark.
Limits for Children
Children under 2 should have no added sugar at all. For kids 2 and older, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends less than 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day, the same limit as the AHA’s guideline for adult women. A single can of soda blows past that number entirely, which is one reason pediatricians flag sugary drinks as a top concern for children’s diets.
How Much Americans Actually Consume
CDC data from 2017 to 2018 found that the average American adult eats about 17 teaspoons of added sugar per day. Men averaged 19 teaspoons, and women averaged 15. Both groups consume roughly twice the recommended limit. Even the lowest-consuming demographic group in the data, non-Hispanic Asian adults, averaged 10 teaspoons per day, still above the AHA guideline for women.
Why Excess Sugar Causes Harm
The health risks of excess added sugar extend well beyond weight gain. High sugar intake raises blood pressure and drives chronic inflammation, both of which contribute to heart disease. A 2023 study published in BMC Medicine tracked more than 110,000 people for an average of nine years and found that higher consumption of added sugars, including from honey and fruit juice, was linked to greater risks of heart disease and stroke.
Sugar also taxes the liver. Dietary carbohydrates get converted to fat in the liver, and when sugar intake is consistently high, fat accumulates there. Over time, this can develop into fatty liver disease, which itself raises the risk of type 2 diabetes. These effects compound: higher blood pressure, more inflammation, weight gain, diabetes, and fatty liver disease all independently increase the likelihood of heart attack and stroke.
Added Sugar vs. Natural Sugar
The sugar in a whole apple and the sugar in a candy bar are chemically similar, but your body handles them differently. Natural sugars in whole fruit come packaged with fiber, water, and nutrients that slow absorption and limit how much you eat in one sitting. Added sugars are the ones introduced during processing or preparation: table sugar stirred into coffee, honey drizzled on yogurt, corn syrup in packaged bread.
The FDA defines added sugars as sugars introduced during food processing (like sucrose or dextrose), sugars from syrups and honey, and sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices. The sugar naturally present in a glass of milk or a piece of fruit doesn’t count toward your added sugar limit. On a Nutrition Facts label, you’ll see “Total Sugars” and directly beneath it “Includes X g Added Sugars,” which is the number to watch.
How to Convert Grams to Teaspoons
Four grams of sugar equals one teaspoon. To figure out how many teaspoons are in any food, just divide the grams of added sugar on the label by four. A product listing 20 grams of added sugar contains 5 teaspoons. This simple conversion makes it much easier to gauge how quickly your daily total adds up.
How Fast Common Drinks Add Up
Sugary drinks are the single largest source of added sugar in the American diet, and the numbers on a 12-ounce serving are striking. A can of Mountain Dew contains 46 grams of sugar (about 11.5 teaspoons). Classic Coke has roughly 40 grams, Pepsi has 41, and Sprite has 36. A 12-ounce Red Bull contains 38 grams. Every one of these exceeds the full daily limit for women in a single serving, and most exceed the limit for men as well.
This is why swapping sugary drinks for water, unsweetened tea, or sugar-free alternatives is consistently the first recommendation from nutritionists. Eliminating one daily soda can cut your added sugar intake nearly in half if you’re at the national average.
Practical Ways to Stay Under the Limit
Tracking added sugar for even a few days reveals patterns most people don’t expect. Flavored yogurt can contain 12 to 15 grams per serving. A tablespoon of ketchup has about 4 grams. Granola bars, salad dressings, and bread often carry added sugar that doesn’t register as “sweet.” Checking the “Added Sugars” line on the Nutrition Facts label is the most reliable way to catch these hidden sources.
A few shifts make the biggest difference. Choose plain yogurt and add your own fruit. Swap flavored oatmeal packets for plain oats. Drink coffee with a splash of milk instead of flavored creamer. Replace soda with sparkling water. None of these require eliminating sugar entirely. They just redirect your intake so the sugar you do eat is intentional rather than incidental.
If you’re currently at the national average of 17 teaspoons, cutting to 9 (the men’s limit) or 6 (the women’s limit) doesn’t have to happen overnight. Reducing by even a few teaspoons per day moves you meaningfully closer to the range where the cardiovascular and metabolic risks start to drop.