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Half of SLO County youth consume sugary drinks daily

October 18, 2013

cokeHalf of San Luis Obispo County youth drink one or more sugar-sweetened beverages a day, according to a UCLA study.

Statewide, 41 percent of youth between the ages of 2 and 17 drink at least one sweetened beverage a day. But, 50 percent of San Luis Obispo County residents between the ages of 2 and 17 consume one or more sugary drinks each day.

San Luis Obispo County youth have the 10th highest consumption rate of sweet drinks in California. King County has the highest rate at 60 percent, while San Francisco has the lowest at 21 percent.

The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research study charted the soda and other sugary drink consumption habits of youth in the years 2011 and 2012. A prior study analyzed consumption patters between 2005 and 2007.

Since the first study, sweetened drink consumption by San Luis Obispo County youth increased, while statewide soda drinking decreased.

In 2005-2007, 46 percent of children and teens in the county drank sugary beverages. The statewide average was also 46 percent in 2005-2007, but it decreased to 41 percent in 2011-2012.

Researchers interviewed more than 40,000 California households for the 2011-2012 study. They found that sugary drink consumption decreased among children ages 2-11 and increased among adolescents ages 12-17.

“Soda and other sugary drinks contribute half a billion empty calories a day to California’s costly childhood obesity crisis,” said Dr. Robert Ross, CEO of The California Endowment, which funded the study. “We have to redouble our efforts to protect our children, especially adolescents and children of color from the unbridled marketing of high calorie drinks that is drowning our kids in sugar.”

 


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Does this count the sugar in the mixed drinks and wine coolers?


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Why is this anybody’s business? If I want a coke, I’ll have a damn coke, thank you very much. Everybody should take care of themselves the way they want to, without anybody else pitching a fit. Mind your own business! If you want the government to tell you what to do, move to New York.


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what is public health? for 50 Alex


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What the heck is wrong with parents today? If they don’t buy the stuff and bring it into the home, the kids won’t grow up drinking it. I grew up drinking infused water with a little honey added during the summer. There were all kinds of delicious infused waters that my mother would make. In the winter we had hot herbal tea or coco but for the most part we drank WATER in our home. Not because we couldn’t afford the soda and kool aide, we didn’t have it because it wasn’t good for us. By the time I got around to access to a coke machine in high school, I hated the stuff, it was too sweet. My brother is the say way and so are his children. It’s all in how you raise your kids, so quit being bad parents.


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Just go to a AM PM or 711 near a school at lunch time and soda is not the only problem. Chips, candy, etc. come flying off those shelves. Kids consume 100’s of misguided calorie’s with money given to them by parents. Serious, go at lunch time to a fast mart near a school and see for yourself. It’s amazing!


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I’m SHOCKED that this percentage isn’t HIGHER! I work at a local restaurant, and the amount of CHILDREN that consume sodas, (and I’m talking YOUNG children), is off the charts!

Just yesterday, I waited on a mom and her two kids. It was the middle of the day so I asked, “oh, no school today?”, and the mom says, “no, they had dental appts.” Then she proceeds to ask them if they wanted “Coke, just like mommy.” UNBELIEVABLE!!!!

And this is NOT a rare occurrence. :(


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That hasnt changed. Kids have been doing that as long as there have been retail stores that sell the stuff. What has changed is less outdoor activity.


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Quite an troubling conundrum. Half a billion calories a day feeding the empty skulls, whose parents aren’t parenting, and whose teachers aren’t teaching. Toss in social media for good measure, and you’ve got our future.


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I wonder why no articles written about the number of youth (under 18) with “medical” marijuana cards?


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So you want to read about minors and their private medical conditions?


Is this part of ” we have no moral values.”?


Somewhere a bear is listening.


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All made even worse by the number of 1 parent households.


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THIS IS AN EPIDEMIC!! Oh wait, no its not.


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You really believe that most people with prescriptions for medical marijuana really have medical issues I suppose. Kind of like thinking that Obamaphones are necessary or that you should be paying for my health insurance becauss I choose not to purchase it.


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Always looking for something to blame…


You know what else contributes to childhood obesity? Lack of doing ANYTHING outside. Sitting and “socializing” on a computer are far more dangerous than a Dr. Pepper.


I’m getting my kids to read sugar / HFCS content and know what they’re putting into their bodies. One of our “compromise” drinks is Sprecher’s Lo-Cal Root Beer (get it at Spencer’s); as it only has a little sugar, some honey, and artificial sweetener.


Ideally, water is consumed more than anything in our house, but we do down our share of milk and tea.


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