Children are exposed to unhealthy school drink environments because of
- High availability of unhealthy options (for example sugary drinks)
- Aggressive marketing of sugary drinks (advertising, sponsorship, promotion)
- Low availability or absence of safe drinking water.
Instead of sugary drinks, children should drink water to stay healthy and quench their thirst.
Sugary drinks often provide unnecessary calories, and in the case of sodas, no benefit to health. Instead, they cause dental decay and obesity.
Sugars should be less than 10% of total energy intake per day.
The World Health Organization recommends consuming no more than 12 teaspoons of sugar for adults and 10 teaspoons of sugar for children below 8.
WHO pointed out that one (1) can of soft drink (330 ml) contains about 8.5 teaspoons of sugar, the daily limit for children 4-5 years old.
Fruit Juices are often seen as a healthier option, however, they can have as much or even more sugar than soft drinks.
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