Posts Tagged ‘beverage’

Add self-deception to the powerful effects of sugary drinks in the news this week. People who defend these drinks and people who attack them seem equally susceptible. On one end of the spectrum, we find a nearly obsessive focus on sugary drinks as the villain of our obesity epidemic, despite new CDC data showing that most of […]

At the Third Canadian Obesity Summit, Harvard Professor Darkish Mozaffarian and Coke VP Rhona Applebaum gave sharply contrasting presentations in quick succession on Thursday. Both of them talked about how different sorts of calories count in obesity, but Applebaum had a very different story to tell. To be fair, she had a tough assignment. Right […]

Coke finds itself in an awkward position. The flagship, full-sugar Coke product competes in a category weighed down by an unhealthy image. Changing consumer preferences for more healthful drinks mean that Coke Classic is destined for decline. Sage corporate strategists in Atlanta understand this and the company is feverishly diversifying its products to include healthier […]

Policy, evidence, and public values commonly meet in awkward circumstances, especially when the subject is obesity and health policy. On just about any day you can find controversy in the headlines about a policy designed to address obesity. On one side, you’ll find scientists offering evidence about the effect the proposal might or might not […]

Some companies are stirring up their employees by trying to tell them how much they should weigh and penalizing those who don’t meet the bar. But it’s worth a look at the very different practices of a top tier employer like Google. And what you’ll find is Google putting its energy into into a healthy […]

In a move the company says is a response to growing demand from consumers, PepsiCo has introduced Kickstart from Mountain Dew, a carbonated breakfast soda with 5% fruit juice. The drink, which will come in orange citrus and fruit punch flavors, has the sort of visually distinctive 16 ounce cans usually reserved for energy drinks […]

Truth, bias, and conflict come together in the field of obesity and nutrition research with astounding intensity. Food and beverage regulation, industry funding for nutrition professionals, and breastfeeding are three examples that come to mind from recent news stories. But we have an abundant supply of other examples. Sugar-sweetened beverages, fast food, and processed foods […]

Hungary is in the midst of a food tax experiment to shape healthier diets and blunt the impact of obesity with the chronic diseases it brings.  France, Finland, Denmark, Britain, Ireland, and Romania have either tried food taxes or considered them. But right now, Hungary stands out for a particularly ambitious effort. In the last […]

Some cities, including Chicago, and schools are considering a ban on energy drinks. According to Ed Burke, the alderman who has proposed the ban in Chicago, “This is an issue that’s starting to resonate around the country.” A study cited by Burke from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) showed that visits […]

If you want to change an environment dominated by huge corporations like PepsiCo to improve public health, what do you do? For tobacco control advocates, the answer was easy: raise the prices on tobacco,  restrict the places where it can be used, and demonize the companies that make it. But with sugary drinks and junk […]