liquid candy

that sweet, sparkling, empty-calorie beverage that has become america's favorite drink may fill you up, but it will let you down when it comes to vitamins and minerals. one might say, "a soda a day keeps the vitamins and minerals away."

soft drinks, which contain about nine teaspoons of sugar per 12-ounce can, are a leading contributor to increased sugar consumption in our diet. diets high in sugar can promote obesity, kidney stones, osteoporosis, heart disease, and dental caries. unfortunately, we have become a nation that is infatuated with sugar. with all the attention on fat and carbs, we have forgotten about sugar and often replace the fat or carbs with sugar. we must take prudent action to stem the dilution of the american diet with sugar's empty calories.

soft drink companies are among the most aggressive marketers in the world. aside from the ubiquitous advertising for increasing consumption, the industry has steadily increased container sizes. have you seen the size of these cups and bottles?! it is very hard to combat their market strategies, but we must continue to try and sensitize consumers to the nutritional "cost" of sugared soft drinks and other foods.

in my final year at southwestern university, i took a class called "us diet, health and the environment." in this class we discussed a variety of topics within the realm of public health, including the increasing popularity of this liquid candy. one suggestion to curb this trend was to apply small taxes to foods that undermine health. why don't we start a petition demanding that soft drinks and sugary snack foods be taxed to provide funding for nutrition and health campaigns? anyone want to sign?