Efforts to Cut Soda Consumption in Schools are Working

On Monday, March 8 former President Bill Clinton joined with officials from the American Beverage Association and the American Heart Association in Manhattan to update the nation on the final results of a three-year effort aimed at providing healthier beverage options to schools across America. According to the report, there has been an 88 percent reduction in calories from beverages shipped to schools since 2004 and a 95 percent reduction in the shipment of full-calorie drinks to campuses. In other words, high school students have gone from drinking an average of one 12-ounce can of full-calorie soft drinks per week at school in 2004 to now consuming the equivalent of one and a half cans (18 ounces) per year. Clinton says he is “stunned by the results.”

The effort began in 2006 when the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a joint initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association created in May 2005 to address childhood obesity, joined with the leading beverage companies to establish guidelines that limit portion sizes and reduce the number of beverage calories available to children during the school day. Under the Alliance School Beverage Guidelines, 100 percent juice, low-fat milk and bottled water are allowed in elementary and middle schools, and diet beverages and calorie-capped sports drinks, flavored waters and teas in high schools.

The new report shows that at the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year, 98.8 percent of all measured schools and school districts were in compliance with the voluntary guidelines. “A critical component of the Alliance’s national effort to end childhood obesity has been our work with the beverage industry to reduce the amount of calories our kids consume in schools,” said President Clinton, founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation, who co-leads the Alliance with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and American Heart Association President Clyde Yancy. “We are encouraged by the significant progress we’ve made and look forward to continuing our work with participating schools, companies and the American Beverage Association to give young people the options and opportunities they need to lead healthier lives.”

AHA’s Dr. Clyde Yancy said he was “really floored” by the decline in calories sold and the change in product mix. He said he hoped the improved choices in schools would have an impact beyond the classroom. “Childhood obesity is a complex problem, and there is no one single solution. The core of the problem, however, is that many of our children and youth are consuming too many calories,” he said. “School is a unique environment where students make food and beverage choices with limited supervision and begin to set food preferences that last into adulthood. The Alliance School Beverage Guidelines are a tool for reducing students’ access to calories during the school day and changing behaviors that may lead to a lifelong improvement in caloric consumption.”