Next time you pop open a can of soda and take a swig, a warning label might be staring you in the face. Americans' rising soda consumption has caught the eye of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a non-profit consumer health group that recently filed a petition with the Food and Drug Administration to post health notices on sugary soft drinks. But while CSPI employees hope that mandating cigarette-like warning labels on soft drink containers will encourage less consumption of the calorie-filled beverages, not everyone in health and nutrition circles is cheering them on.
CSPI's July 2005 petition, which refers to soft drinks as "liquid candy," included new analyses of government data and contended that "teenagers are drinking more high-calorie soft drinks than ever...despite growing concerns about obesity." A concurrent press release distributed by the organization said that teenage boys who drink soft drinks consume an average of three 12-ounce cans per day, and teen girls consume more than two cans.
In their petition to the FDA, CSPI asks for the introduction of a series of rotating health notices on all containers of non-diet soft drinks containing more than 13 grams of refined sugars per 12 ounces (the equivalent of roughly three teaspoons of sugar). Under the proposed guidelines, soft drinks like Coca-Cola that have a whopping 39 grams of sugar per serving (nearly ten teaspoons!) and fruit drinks like Snapple, with over 20 grams of sugar per serving, would both qualify for the cautionary notice.
The controversy surrounding the proposed warning labels lies not in the charge that these sugary drinks lack nutrition, but in the suggestion that a label alone would remedy the problem. Most nutritionists agree that added refined sugars, like those found in soft drinks, supply excess calories but few nutrients.
"It's very important to point out that soda is contributing many empty calories to the diet," Julie Lampie, R.D., Nutrition Marketing Specialist and dietitian for Tufts Dining Services said. "Soft drinks are being consumed at excessive quantities and are certainly contributing to the rising obesity problem in this country."
In fact, the rise in obesity rates follows a very similar rise in soft-drink consumption, prompting several research studies examining the parallel trends. One study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reported a tripling in the amount of daily calories supplied by soft drinks and fruit drinks between 1977 and 2001. Coincidentally, obesity rates doubled - rising from 15 percent to 31 percent - in that time alone.
Researchers at Tufts have also studied the phenomenon and have concluded that soda and other sweet drinks are quickly forming a major portion of the American diet. Preliminary data from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts' Boston-based health-science campus, suggested that the leading source of calories in the average American diet may now come from sweetened beverages. Before this, the long-standing culprit had been white bread.
With nearly two-thirds of the U.S. population overweight and nearly a third obese, it is clear that something needs to be done. But even though nutrition experts have agreed that soft drinks can contribute to weight gain, they have disagreed about the warning labels.
"Labeling is ineffective," Lampie said. "We have that now. Putting additional messages on a can or a bottle is ludicrous. It's a waste of resources."
Lampie gave examples of government-imposed warnings on cigarette labels as an example of such wasted resources. While cigarette warning labels were first placed on cigarette packages in 1965, consumption didn't taper off until 1979 - years after public anti-cigarette campaigns.
"What made the difference in reducing cigarette sales?" Lampie said. "The warning labels? No. It was educating the public about the underlying risk of cancer."
Education - not mandated labeling - is the key to changing behavior according to Lampie. She also said that there is an uphill battle that educators face when they take on large corporations like Coke and Pepsi Co.
"The marketing budget to get people to eat and drink nutritionally inferior foods is huge," she said. "It's really hard to combat that."
In fact, the soda companies have already launched an attack on the proposed warning labels, pointing out that nutrition information and ingredients are already required on the container.
The American Beverage Association (ABA), which represents soft drink manufacturers, has claimed that the labels would be patronizing to consumers. The group argues that beverage companies have already responded to the obesity epidemic by providing many lower-calorie and non-calorie options, such as bottled water and diet soft drinks.
"Soft drinks are a refreshing and enjoyable beverage to be consumed in moderation as part of a balanced approach to life," said Susan Neely, president of the ABA, in a statement responding to the CSPI petition. "Warning labels designed by CSPI will unnecessarily confuse consumers without providing helpful nutritional information. Individuals, not the government, are in the best position to make the food and beverage choices that are right for them."
But many individuals simply don't realize just how much sugar and calories they're consuming through soft drinks.
"Many people look at labels but don't realize that what they're reading is not for the whole portion, but for a half or a third of the container," Lampie said. "Everything has been supersized. The average soda size used to be 12 ounces. Now students are grabbing 20 ounce bottles. They're not thinking about the extra calories. The average person on the street has no idea."
Whether warning labels would give the public a "better idea" of the excess calories in soft drinks is unclear. There is concern, however, that the proposed labeling would open up the proverbial can of worms and prompt warning labels on everything from potato chips to chocolate bars - a move that Lampie said worries her.
"It's not about labeling foods as good and bad," she said. "All foods and drinks can play a part in the American diet. The drinks themselves aren't the problem. The amount being consumed is the problem... And education - starting in the home with parents - is going to make the difference. Not more labeling."
Ferring and Wally are graduate students majoring in Nutrition Communication at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Ferring majored in Journalism and minored in Nutrition at Syracuse University. Wally is one of the co-editors of Balance this semester.
