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Youth obesity far bigger than Coke

December 1st, 2005

Published on: 12/01/05

A pending lawsuit against Coca-Cola will charge that the Atlanta soft drink giant uses caffeine to addict schoolchildren to its nutritionally bankrupt product, and the legal team behind the class-action suit is the same one that successfully challenged Big Tobacco.

There’s no disputing that children should not be drinking as many soft drinks as they are. Soft drinks represent almost a fourth of the caloric intake of children ages 2 to 19, and teens consume twice as much soda as milk. Daily consumption of one 12-ounce sweetened soft drink raises a child’s risk of obesity by 60 percent.

Schools ought to end their unholy alliance with the soft drink industry whereby they permit vending machines in their hallways in return for a portion of the sales. The Sprites and Cokes are too tempting for teens, most of whom know nothing about the word “moderation” — except, perhaps, how to spell it.

Because of the epidemic of childhood obesity and the specter of legislative action, the soft drink companies have made concessions, removing sugary sodas from elementary and middle schools. However, soft drinks are still available in about 60 percent of the nation’s public and private high schools, and many teens still regard a Coke and a Snickers bar as lunch.

Which brings up another point: If caffeine in schools is a threat, the lawyers shouldn’t stop with soda. There’s caffeine in the candy bars dispensed from vending machines and in the chocolate milk served in the cafeteria. (And don’t forget all those tins of chocolate-doused popcorn and cashews that children sell as fund-raisers.) There’s twice as much caffeine in a glass of ice tea, the elixir of the South, as in a glass of Coke.

The problem isn’t the Coke that kids today swill like water. Their appetite for sweet beverages is a symptom of the larger and more complex issue — sugar and fat have become the staples of American children’s diets, from Cocoa Puffs in the morning to extra-cheese pizza at night. An after-school snack used to be an apple. Now, it’s Frosted S’Mores Pop-Tarts.

And it’s not just children who are getting fat. Their parents also have lousy diets and compromised health.

Until attorneys are ready to serve notice on every pantry in America, children will continue to develop poor dietary habits — not from what they learn at school but from what they see at home.

Source: ajc.com

Entry Filed under: Nutrition News

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