**Preface to "Nutritional Modulation of Dietary Sugars as a Strategy to Improve Insulin Resistance and Energy Balance in Diabetes"**

Dietary changes toward the increased consumption of Westernised diets and processed food is associated with the increasing prevalence of overweight in young adults and risk of obesity and associated pathologies later in life. The consumption of added sugars contributes to an increased energy density in diet, leading to a positive energy balance, larger waist circumference, and weight gain, increasing the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Moreover, there is a strong association of whole-body and abdominal fat mass with type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancers. Fat accumulation and body mass index (BMI) are directly proportional to the excessive intake of energy in relation to expenditure, especially from foods rich in fats. Sugars may be divided into two distinct groups: those naturally present and those added to foods. Natural or intrinsic sugars are naturally present in foods, such as fruit sugar (fructose), vegetables, honey, and sugars from dairy products (galactose and lactose). Added sugars are a large group of mono- and di-saccharides that go into foods during processing, preparation, or at the table, with the objective of sweetening, increasing food palatability and shelf life, improving texture, inhibiting the growth of microorganisms in high concentrations, providing functional structures, or increasing accessibility. They are mostly found in sugary drinks, pastry products, cookies, fruit juices, energy drinks, nectars, fruit juices from concentrate, white bread, and breakfast cereals. The impact of dietary sugars on the pathophysiological mechanisms of type 2 diabetes and its complications is not entirely understood.

> **Paulo Matafome** *Editor*
