Many Schools Replace Soda in Vending Machines With Other Unhealthy Drinks, Column States
Many schools that have decided to remove soft drinks from vending machines to address childhood obesity have replaced soda with flavored beverages and sports drinks that are "just as bad or worse," reporter Tara Parker-Pope writes in a Wall Street Journal Health Journal column. According to Parker-Pope, concerns about the loss of millions of dollars in revenue from contracts with soft drink companies have prompted many schools to replace soda with beverages that "sound healthier" but are "simply noncarbonated versions of sodas" that often contain large amounts of water and high fructose corn syrup. In New York, for example, schools have replaced soft drinks with 100% juice versions of Snapple, which have more calories and grams of sugar than soda, Parker-Pope writes. She adds that several studies have found that calories from such beverages are "more insidious" than calories from food because they "simply don't make you feel full so you end up consuming far more calories than you would otherwise" (Parker-Pope, Wall Street Journal, 1/13).
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