Sugary drinks are one of the top sources of calories in the American diet and are a big contributor to the obesity epidemic.
Young people are exposed to a massive amount of marketing for sugary drinks, such as sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks, and fruit drinks. Despite industry pledges to market fewer unhealthy beverages to children, this report finds there is more—not less—advertising for sugary drinks overall.
Although many schools are making an effort to remove regular soda, other sugary drinks remain widely available in vending machines, school stores, and other locations. Sports drinks are by far the most commonly offered type of sugary drink available in U.S. middle and high schools.
A nationwide, penny-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages would prevent thousands of heart attacks, strokes, and cases of diabetes, and help avoid billions of dollars in medical costs.
In the middle of a national obesity epidemic, many sports drinks sold in the United States contain high amounts of sugar, adding more calories to youths’ diets.
Over the past 30 years, U.S. children and adolescents have dramatically increased their consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, including soda, fruit drinks and punches, and sports drinks.
Bridging the Gap examines how food and beverage prices affect consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and the potential impact of taxes on sugary drinks. The program also has the latest research about state-level taxes on snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages.
Healthy Eating Research convened an expert advisory panel to develop a comprehensive set of age-based recommendations to define healthier beverages.
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September 17, 2012 | Feature/Topic
Browse research, insight and analysis on key issues affecting health and health care in the United States.
August 14, 2012 | Issue Brief
Some Encouraging Progress, Additional Improvements are Needed
October 1, 2012 | Journal Article
The food and beverages served in elementary school meal programs through the United States Department of Agriculture school meal program must meet certain federal nutrition standards. However, many schools also sell food through à la carte lines and ...
August 1, 2012 | Journal Article
Sweetened drinks are a primary source of added dietary sugar for children. Drinks obtained at school in “competitive venues”—outside of the federally reimbursable school meal program—significantly contribute to student caloric intake. These research ...
July 2, 2012 | News Release
The study examined the availability of competitive beverages in U.S. public elementary schools for five academic years, from 2006–07 to 2010–11. Competitive beverages are those sold by schools outside of meal programs through vending machines, à la ...
December 13, 2010 | Journal Article
A sugar-sweetened beverage tax would affect the waistline and wallet of middle-income households more than that of those in low-income and high income brackets.
November 1, 2010 | Journal Article
A new study finds that almost half of the nation's public elementary school students could buy unhealthy beverages such as sodas, sports drinks and higher-fat milk during the 2008-09 school year. The problem is most severe in the South where obesity rates are highest.
August 1, 2010 | Journal Article
In a test at one hospital cafeteria, a 45 cent price increase reduced purchases of sugary soft drinks, aligning with other research that suggests price increases of unhealthy substances may reduce consumption. Nutrition education alone had no effect.
April 1, 2010 | Journal Article
New study finds that current soda tax rates don't deter consumption.
December 2, 2009 | Journal Article
Research briefs, journal articles and online resources explore the possible health and economic impacts of a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages.
September 1, 2009 | Journal Article
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation invests in research aimed at reducing childhood obesity. This study investigated associations between soda taxes and body mass index (BMI) in 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students in the period 1997-2006.