In early May, the beverage industry agreed to remove high-calorie soft drinks from U.S. schools over the next three years. The Alliance for a Healthier Generation a joint initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association has worked with representatives of Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and the American Beverage Association to establish new guidelines to limit portion sizes and reduce the number of calories available to children during the school day. Under the new guidelines, only lower calorie and nutritious beverages will be sold to schools.
Under the new guidelines, the following changes will take place:
Elementary schools will only sell water; eight ounce, calorie-capped servings of 100% juices with no added sweeteners; and servings of fat-free and low-fat regular and flavored milks.
Middle schools will apply the elementary school standard, with portion sizes increased slightly to 10 ounces.
High schools will no longer sell high-calorie soft drinks, but may sell no-calorie and low-calorie drinks, such as bottled water, diet and unsweetened teas, diet sodas, fitness water, low-calorie sports drinks, flavored water, and seltzers, as well as light juices and sports drinks, in addition to the beverages available in elementary and middle schools. At least half of available beverages in high schools will now be water, no-calorie, and low-calorie selections. Light juices and sports drinks will be sold in 12 ounce containers with no more than 100 calories per container, while 100% juices and non-fat and low-fat milks will also be sold in containers up to 12-ounces.
But dont expect these changes to take place immediately in your schools. The goal is to implement these guidelines in 75 percent of schools under contract with bottlers prior to the beginning of the 200809 school year. Compliance for all schools is to be achieved before the start of the 200910 school year. This is the Alliances first industry agreement as part of its Healthy Schools Program, and it affects close to 35 million students across the country.
In 2004, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a policy informing pediatricians, parents, superintendents, and school board members about nutritional concerns regarding soft drink consumption in schools. The AAP policy encouraged school districts to adopt district-wide policies restricting the sale of soft drinks at schools. According to the AAP, potential health problems associated with a high intake of sweetened drinks are: 1) overweight or obesity attributable to additional calories in the diet; 2) displacement of milk consumption, resulting in calcium deficiency with an attendant risk of osteoporosis and fractures; and 3) dental caries and potential enamel erosion.
For years, the US Department of Agriculture, which oversees the National School Lunch Program, has been concerned that foods with high sugar content (especially foods of minimal nutritional value, such as soft drinks) are displacing nutrients within the school lunch program, and there is evidence to support this. The new beverage guidelines are a first step to limiting the intake of calories at school and making the school day healthier.
Sources: Alliance for a Healthier Generation (www.healthiergeneration.org), American Heart Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
