Substantial headway has been made lately in getting sugary (and high-fructose corn syrup-laden) sodas out of schools.
But that might not make much difference in kids’ overall soda consumption.
Both pieces of news came across my desk as I was writing today’s “Eat, Drink and Be Healthy” column about school lunch nutrition. Together they demonstrate how daunting a goal it is to try to change eating and drinking habits — other people’s and our own.
The good news, coming from the American Beverage Association, is that sweetened soft drinks accounted for less than 25 percent of beverages sold in schools last year; that’s down from 40 percent in 2004. The ABA has been working with the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation (as in former President Bill) to affect a shift toward healthier drinks — those with fewer calories and offered in smaller portions than your standard can of pop — in schools. Bottled water has filled much of the gap, moving from 13 percent of the beverages sold in schools in 2004 to almost 28 percent last year.