Obesity in children is now epidemic in the United States with 30% of children are overweight. In Australia, 60% of children are overweight, with 20% being obese. Does your child or someone you know:
• Have weight problems?
• Been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, also known as adult-onset diabetes?
• Have high cholesterol and blood pressure levels?
• Have sleep apnea (interrupted breathing while sleeping)?
• Have orthopedic problems, liver disease, or asthma?
Can these alarming facts have anything to do with the lack of real nutrition?
For every soft drink or sugar-sweetened beverage a child drinks every day,
their obesity risk appears to jump 60%.
A study included over 500 schoolchildren of various ethnic backgrounds who were aged 11 and 12. The investigators found that for every can or glass of sugar-sweetened beverage a child drank during the 19-month study, a child's body mass index -- a measure of weight related to height -- and their chance of becoming obese increased 60%. This study is the first long-term study that links soft drink consumption to obesity in children. The study received no financial support from any organization that either promotes or opposes soft drink consumption.
