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BC Hydro

Soft Drinks – Big Cause For Concern

April 13th, 1999

As seen on BCTV April 13/99
SOFT DRINKS – BIG CAUSE FOR CONCERN

Big Ad Budgets

  • just one company alone spends $10 million/year to advertise their products in Canada. Their goal is: “To make their product the preferred drink for any occasion from a family supper to a formal state dinner.”
  • way less money is spent in this country advertising healthier optionsBig Sales
  • 1 billion servings a day of Coca-Cola products are consumed world wide.
  • The products are priced to be cheaper than healthier options like milk, juice or bottled water.Big Servings
  • in the 1950’s a pop serving was 195 ml portion, today it’s 600 ml.
  • the average Canadian drinks 112 litres/pop/year – an average of 1 can/day – this represents 3650 teaspoons of sugar a year just from pop – or 54,750 calories equivalent to 15 pounds of body weight if consumed above and beyond the required calories one needs!
  • A McDonald’s large pop is 730 ml
  • A 7-11’s Double Gulp is 1.9 litres (600 calories)
  • product pricing encourages buying larger portions – perceived savingsBig Nutritional Concerns!!!
  • 1/5 (20%) of 1 to 2 year olds drink 7 oz. of pop/day
  • males between the ages of 12-29 drink the most pop – 28 oz or 3.5 cups a day
  • teens today drink twice as much pop as milk; 20 years ago the opposite was true
  • 1 – 355 ml can of pop supplies 10 teaspoons of sugar, 150 calories, 50 mg caffeine, artificial flavors and colors
  • as consumption of this “liquid candy” goes up, water, milk and juice intake decreases
  • more sugar means more tooth decay
  • empty calories contribute to weight gain and consequent increase risk for diabetes, heart disease and social and psychological problems related to obesity
  • pop can contribute to bone loss due to caffeine and phospohoric acid, this can also lead to kidney stonesThe Bottom Line:
  • Drink less pop
  • Drink more water and nutritious beverages
  • Don’t buy such large portions!

There’s more great information on this topic at www.cspinet.org/sodapop
Watch for the Eating for Energy segment every Tuesday on BCTV’s Noon News Hour!

Article written by Patricia Chuey and reprinted with permission