Disability status and consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages: analysis of a Colombian population survey

Introduction: according to the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity has tripled in the world as a result of high caloric intake. People with disabilities are more likely to be overweight and obese. Objectives: this study aimed to estimate the association between disability status and consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages in the population aged 18 years and older in Colombia in 2017. Methods: we conducted a secondary analysis of data from Colombia's 2017 National Quality of Life Survey (ECV). The dependent variable was the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, and the independent variable was the disability status. Additionally, confounding variables were incorporated. An ordinal logistic regression was performed to estimate the magnitude of the association. The complex sample design of the 2017 LCS was considered in all results. Results: we included data from 18,957 persons aged 18 years and older; 7.9 % had a disability, and 64.4 % consumed sugar-sweetened beverages. People with moderate and severe disability were 18 % and 41 %, respectively, less likely to have a higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages compared to people without disability (OR: 0.82; 95 % CI: 0.72-0.95 and OR: 0.59; 95 % CI: 0.39-0.90). When stratified by age group, this association remained only in those older than 45. Conclusions: in Colombia, in 2017, people with disabilities older than 45 years consumed fewer sugar-sweetened beverages than people without disabilities.