Teenage boys who drink carbonated or non-carbonated soft drinks consume an average of three 12-ounce cans per day, and girls more than two cans, according to a new analysis of 1999-2002 government data. Teens who drink soft drinks get nearly 15 percent of their total calories from those drinks.
A dietary expert at Washington University in St. Louis has several suggestions for helping to curb teenage soda consumption.
"Excess soft drink consumption often occurs at the expense of other, healthier choices," says Connie Diekman, director of University Nutrition. "Most research shows that kids shift from milk and water to soft drinks, thus depriving their bodies of the nutrition found in milk at a time when they most need the nutrients for growth. In addition to this nutrient shift, drinking too many soft drinks results in too many calories, which if not burned off means kids and adults will gain weight."
How can we avoid the extra calories from sodas? "Parents can first make sure they aren't over-consuming soft drinks, since what they do is what kids will do," Diekman suggests. "Parents need to provide other beverage options - flavored, low-fat milks, 100% fruit juices, water or flavored water. Parents also need to remind kids that fruit juice, while a more nutritious choice, can provide excess calories if it is over-consumed."
Diekman also suggests that parents should also talk with their kids about making healthier beverage choices so that kids understand why limitation is needed. "Simply telling your child not to drink any soda will, nine times out of ten, result in kids turning the other way and drinking the soft drink. Education and understanding are keys to behavior change."
What about diet soda? "Diet sodas are an option, but since they don't provide the nutritional benefits of milk, they would come second to either milk or fruit juice," Diekman says.
wustl
GM has undoubtedly been a controversial technology in the UK and Europe if not elsewhere, not least because of the major role played by large multinational corporations. But now we have an excellent opportunity to make transgenic technologies work for the benefit of the world ™s poor.
It has taken private funding to do this, and we are delighted that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has recognised the importance of this project in overcoming one of the major challenges to global health.
Cassava is the fourth-most important crop in Africa. A fully-grown cassava plant can stay in the ground for up to two years and needs relatively little water to survive. The starchy roots are a key source of carbohydrates for subsistence farmers in Africa.
Dr Beeching ™s laboratory will focus on the molecular basis and control of accelerated post-harvest deterioration in cassava roots. Earlier work by Dr Beeching has shown that oxidative stress in cassava roots within three hours of harvesting triggers a rapid deterioration in the quality of the vegetable and that antioxidant enzymes and molecules play a major role in controlling this stress response.
They hope that by targeting some of the enzymes involved in this process they can increase the shelf life of the cassava once it has been harvested.
Cassava that is available in this country has been dipped in wax to prevent deterioration of the vegetable, but clearly this is not a feasible option for people who are struggling to survive said Dr Beeching.
Cassava is an excellent crop, but it has problems cannot be simply overcome. It has to be prepared and cooked in order to stop it producing cyanide, it will deteriorate in 72 hours in storage and it is of low nutritional value to the people who eat it to survive.
We have the world ™s top people working on these problems and we hope that within the next ten years we will be ready to hand over our first improved cassava crop to subsistence farmers and make a real difference to the lives of millions of the world ™s poorest people.
bath.ac