Is the ‘up and coming’ population going to have to survive on ready made meals and takeaways?
The Government’s National Diet & Nutrition Survey of 4-18 year olds1, published in 2000, revealed that the intake of non-milk extrinsic sugars contributed to 16.7% of young people’s energy intake, which is well above the recommended upper limit of 11%. Carbonated drinks were the main source. This high value has prompted interest in studies investigating the health consequences of fizzy drink consumption. To date the number of such studies has been fairly small, so limited conclusions can be drawn. It would be too easy to blame this high profile part of the diet for the increase in obesity levels, especially in the younger population, so we must keep this in perspective. How do fizzy drinks affect our health? Is there a compound within drinks that may affect our health (e.g. phosphoric acid that alters calcium absorption)? Or are we substituting other nutritious foods/drinks with carbonated drinks and hence missing out on the valuable nutrients they provide (e.g. milk as a source of cal
