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Soft Drinks and Obesity
Study on Sweet Drink Consumption Does Little to Clarify Causes of Obesity in Low-Income Preschool Children
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Kathleen Dezio
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RECENT SIMILAR STUDY SHOWS NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN BEVERAGE CONSUMPTION AND CHANGES IN BODY MASS INDEX (BMI)
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A study published today in the journal Pediatrics suggesting that the consumption of sweet drinks is associated with overweight among low-income preschool children fails to clarify the overall cause of obesity among the defined population, according to American Beverage Association scientist Dr. Richard Adamson. Ninety percent of the children in this study did not consume any soft drinks.
“If sweetened beverages were really causing obesity in these children, one would expect that those who drank the most would be the most likely to become obese, but that is not what the study found,” said Dr. Richard Adamson, vice president of scientific and technical affairs for American Beverage Association. “The most consistent finding in this study is that the majority of lean kids did not become obese, and those who were overweight or obese at age two were quite likely to be overweight or obese a year later.”
According to Adamson, limitations of the study included the fact that the researchers did not control for energy expenditure through activity, hours of television viewing, and parental overweight.
The study, titled “Overweight Among Low-Income Preschool Children Associated With the Consumption of Sweet Drinks: Missouri, 1999-2002” by Jean Welsh et al., used a retrospective cohort design to examine the association between consumption of sweetened drinks (juices, vitamin C-containing juices, fruit drinks, and sodas) and overweight among low-income preschool children.
Among children who were normal or underweight at baseline for Body Mass Index (BMI), the association between sweetened drink consumption was positive but not statistically significant. In addition, there was no increase in risk for overweight between those consuming one to less than two sweetened drinks per day and those consuming three or more drinks per day. Thus, the study’s findings failed to show a dose response. In other words, increased intake of sweetened beverages did not lead to increase in overweight.
The study also left the definition of a serving to highly variable parental definition rather than the standard eight fluid ounces as defined by The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines. Sample selection was also a limitation as stated by the study because “the majority of children in the sample did not have their dietary patterns assessed… at their one year follow up clinic visit.” Instead, the authors of the study used “baseline intake of sweet drinks as an indicator of consumption during the follow up period.”
Adamson added that scientific findings in several studies in peer-reviewed literature, including a recent similar study from Tufts University and Harvard University, are contrary to the findings of this study. The latter study, by P.K. Newby et al., “Beverage Consumption Is Not Associated with Changes in Weight and Body Mass Index among Low-Income Preschool Children in North Dakota,” analyzed more than 1,300 children and did not show any association between beverages and changes in BMI.
As a possible explanation for its findings, authors referenced studies that theorized about the inability of low-fiber foods, and by implication beverages, to satiate. However, researchers at The University of Washington found no difference between the ability of solid food and sweet beverages with the same energy equivalent to satiate (Almiron-Roig, E, Flores S, Drewnowski A. “No Difference in Satiety or in Subsequent Energy Intakes Between a Beverage and a Solid Food.” Physiology & Behavior 82: 671-677, 2004).
The authors of the study noted that when considering the causes of, and solutions for, obesity, “no one factor is entirely responsible. Addressing the problem will undoubtedly entail changes in both diet and physical activity.”
They also acknowledged that “additional studies are needed to understand the mechanism by which such consumption contributes to overweight.”
Adamson said the beverage industry encourages parents to choose the beverages that are appropriate for their children and provides a selection of beverage choices including bottled water and 100 percent juices. The study found no significant association of fruit juices with body weight in normal or underweight children. Among children overweight at baseline, the association with overweight was positive although “the strength was diminished, and the results were of only borderline significance.”
The American Beverage Association is the trade association representing the broad spectrum of companies that manufacture and distribute non-alcoholic beverages in the United States.