With the link between sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and childhood obesity well established, effective strategies to reduce consumption of these beverages among children are needed. The objective of this research is to determine whether the nutritional content of fortified beverages and fruit drinks warrants their inclusion or exclusion from public policies designed to reduce the marketing and availability of SSBs. The study aims to: 1) describe the risks and/or benefits that fortified beverages and fruit drinks pose to children’s health, especially among racial and ethnic minority youth; 2) describe the potential impact of fortified beverages and fruit drinks on childhood obesity; 3) analyze the validity of health and/or nutritional benefit claims made on package labeling; and 4) describe the potential of health claims to influence the support of youth, the general public, and policy-makers for including or excluding fortified beverages and fruit drinks in beverage policies.
Start Date: February 2012
ID #: 69819
Principal Investigator: Harold Goldstein, DrPH
Co-Principal Investigator: Patricia Crawford, DrPH, RD
Organization: California Center for Public Health Advocacy
Funding Round: Rapid-Response Round 4
Age Groups: Adolescents (grades 9 to 12), Elementary-age children (grades K to 5), Preschool-age children (ages 3 to 5), Young adolescents (grades 6 to 8)
Race/Ethnicity: African American or Black, Asian, Latino(a) or Hispanic, Multi-racial/ethnic
Focus Areas: Beverages, Food Marketing
Keywords: Food advertising, Food formulation, Sugar-sweetened beverages
Resource Type: Grant Summary
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