Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Childhood Obesity: A Life-Course Perspective

Background/Objectives: Childhood obesity represents a major global health challenge. Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) remain an important modifiable dietary exposure; however, adolescent beverage behavior is often examined independently of dietary patterns established earlier in life. This narrative review examines SSB consumption and adiposity across the life course, particularly during the first 1000 days as a sensitive period for developing dietary habits. Methods: Targeted literature searches were conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science (January 2021–13 August 2026). We prioritized systematic reviews, meta-analyses, prospective cohort studies, randomized trials, and mechanistically informative studies. Study selection was purposive, and causal language was reserved for rigorous designs. Results: SSB intake is associated with higher body mass index, waist circumference, body fat percentage, and pediatric obesity. Potential mechanistic pathways include incomplete energy compensation for liquid calories, fructose-related hepatic de novo lipogenesis under conditions of high exposure, and insulin resistance; however, the independent contribution of fructose remains difficult to disentangle from excess energy intake, beverage form, and the broader dietary matrix. SSB consumption patterns may emerge early and track through childhood, influenced by family, socioeconomic, and commercial determinants. Evidence does not consistently support the hypothesis that repeated sweetness exposure increases subsequent sweetness liking. Metabolic consequences include dyslipidemia, hypertension, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Prevention approaches include family- and school-based interventions, beverage reformulation, and fiscal policies. Conclusions: A life-course perspective supports shaping beverage environments early, strengthening healthy home food environments, and implementing structural public-health interventions rather than addressing unhealthy patterns only after they become established. However, policy effects may vary across pediatric subgroups.