Today teenage boys ingest 275 calories more per day than they did in the 1980s. Approximately 45 of these calories come from fat, but by far the majority approximately 220 calories comes from increased carbohydrate consumption.
Many of these carbohydrates come from beverages. Soft drink consumption has increased by 41% among teens and fruit juice is up 35%.
In 1955 Coca-Cola bottles were 6.5 oz, in 1960 they were 12oz, in 1980 the bottles reached their current size of 32 to 44oz.
Solving obesity in adolescents might be as simple as not having sugar drinks at home and no soda machines at schools.
Encourage your children to drink more water or sugar-free beverage options. Let’s all help fight childhood obesity.
Sincerely,
Dr. Brent Larsen
Physician for Living
