Shauna Curphey - Writing

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The Choice of the Next Generation

Healthy Answers, June 1, 2001

By Shauna Curphey

"The Real Thing" is the wrong thing for kids. Soft drinks provide sugar, calories and caffeine to a nation of young people facing an obesity epidemic. Research shows that overweight kids receive more calories from soda than do youngsters without weight problems. A more recent study found that kids who choose soda over milk or juice are less likely to meet the daily recommendation for several vitamins and minerals necessary for healthy growth and development.

With commercials that tout soft drinks as magic elixirs of joy, originality and vitality, it’s tough to convince kids otherwise. One of every four beverages consumed in the United States is a soft drink. Though it’s tempting to ban pop from kids’ diets altogether, its ready availability in vending machines, at fast-food counters and in convenience store coolers makes it impossible to enforce this dietary dogma. For kids at school, it’s easier to grab a soda than to get their hands on a healthy alternative. Nearly 240 school districts in 31 states have sold exclusive marketing rights to soda companies.

Dr. Jennifer Orlet Fisher, an assistant professor of pediatrics and behavioral nutrition with the USDA Children’s Nutrition Research Center, recommends a measured approach. “All foods can be incorporated into children’s diets in moderation,” Fisher says. The key is to help kids make healthy choices by offering nutritious alternatives and modeling good eating habits. “Kids diets tend to resemble their parents’ diets,” Fisher says. “Your pantry should resemble what you want your diet to look like.”