A 2024 paper describes ongoing community-based work to promote consumption of water in place of sugar-sweetened beverages, SSBs, on Navajo Nation. The Navajo community is disproportionately affected by water insecurity with 30% of households lacking reliable drinking water access. These households must get water from local water filling stations, water trucks, unregulated wells and springs, or by buying bottled water. Cost, compromised water safety, or distance from the water source make these options less than ideal. Water insecurity is known to be associated with greater SSB consumption. Even in households with plumbed water, a myriad socio-environmental factors have made SSBs a beverage of choice. The Navajo community experiences high rates of diet-related chronic disease including childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes, which can be connected to high SSB consumption. In an early step, the research team gathered perspectives on water from community members of all ages. These revealed the deeply rooted cultural significance of water in connection to traditional spiritual and family values. The team formed the Water is K'é Community Advisory Group—which includes early education teachers, community activists, cultural experts, health promotion experts, parents, and Navajo elders—and an intervention to increase water consumption in young children was developed. The Diné (Navajo) word K'é refers to the “system of kinship observed between Diné people and all living things in existence,” in other words, among us all and also with water itself. The intervention included nutrition education that incorporates Diné culture by using and teaching Diné words and stories about water. This study also proposed that the focus on culture together with plans to increase water access tailored to individual situations would be effective in promoting healthy beverage habits in young Navajo children. The study was conducted by Carmen George, Brianna John, Rachel Whitman, Shine K. Salt, and Sonya S. Shin from the Division of Global Health Equity, Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Community Outreach and Patient Empowerment Program, COPE, of Navajo Nation in collaboration with Ken Hecht and Christina Hecht from the Nutrition Policy Institute and Laura Vollmer from University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources and numerous community partners. It was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Healthy Eating Research and Notah Begay III Foundation. The intervention is now being tested thanks to funding from the National Institutes of Health.
University of California's Research Consortium on Beverages and Health released a new fact sheet to help educate community members and decision-makers on added-sugar consumption in sugary drinks as a leading cause of tooth decay. The fact sheet, ‘Sugary Drinks: A Double Whammy for Teeth', explains how the acids and sugars in sugary drinks contribute to tooth decay. The Consortium previously released five other fact sheets on sugary drinks. All the Consortium fact sheets translate the science into key points, provided in language that is short and easy to read. The Consortium—comprised of faculty working across the field of sugar science from all ten UC campuses and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources—is coordinated by the Nutrition Policy Institute under the leadership of Christina Hecht, Ken Hecht, and Pat Crawford. Please contact Ken Hecht for more information about the Consortium and Christina Hecht for additional resources for community education on healthy beverage choices.
A 2024 article by Matthew Yoshimoto of The Daily Californian discussed Berkeley's 2014 soda tax, and its presence on the ballot in November 2024. Since its implementation, the soda tax, a 1-cent-per-ounce excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages, has had drastic impacts on community health. By 2017, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages decreased by over 50% and water consumption increased by almost 30%. The revenue has funded efforts to improve the nutrition environment in the low-income and minority communities hardest hit by the sugary drinks. NPI's Ken Hecht highlighted that health in Black and Latine communities has especially benefited from the soda tax's direct and indirect effects. The soda tax has also helped in the efforts to combat childhood obesity. According to a study by Kaiser Permanente, cities where the tax is implemented did not show an increase in childhood obesity rates while rates are increasing elsewhere. Berkeley's change has had a positive ripple effect, with cities including Oakland and San Francisco following with their own taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages. Though the soda tax has had overwhelming support from voters, due to push back from soda companies there are new legislative barriers concerning the tax. While a tax increase is currently not an option for Berkeley, there is hope that in November 2024, voters will consider the positive effects of the soda tax and support its indefinite renewal.
- Author: Brianna Aguayo Villalon
- Editor: Danielle Lee
- Editor: Lorrene Ritchie
The excessive consumption of added sugars by Americans has surpassed the recommended levels outlined in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, highlighting a pressing public health concern.The Nutrition Policy Institute at the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources submitted a public comment in response to the US Food and Drug Administration's call for strategies to reduce added sugars consumption in the United States. The comment outlines 13 recommended actions for federal agencies and four recommended actions that other stakeholders can take to minimize added sugars consumption. Additionally, NPI urged the FDA to address safety concerns around the replacement of added sugars with low- and no-calorie sweeteners, specifically among children. Federal agencies and stakeholders have ample opportunities to decrease added sugars consumption in the US. and NPI emphasized the need for action on recommendations to enhance food safety and empower consumers to make healthier choices. The public comment period was open from November 6, 2023, to January 22, 2024. All submitted comments are available to view online on Regulations.gov.
The University of California Research Consortium on Beverages and Health, a group of faculty from every UC campus coordinated by the Nutrition Policy Institute, has released two new resources to support reducing consumption of sugary drinks. The first is a factsheet, University Beverage Pouring Rights Contracts – And Alternatives, which aims to educate university stakeholders about beverage “pouring rights” contracts that allow a beverage company—usually PepsiCo or Coca-Cola—nearly exclusive rights to market and sell its products throughout the university's campus and during events. The factsheet outlines the variety of stipulations present in these contracts and suggests alternative strategies for healthier, more up-to-date beverage procurement. The second resource is a living document, an Interactive Table of Policy Strategies to Reduce Consumption of Sugary Drinks (US – Proposed and Enacted). The table portrays the landscape of federal and tribal, state, city, workplace and educational institution policies in use in the US to reduce consumption of sugary drinks: excise taxes on sugary drink distributors, bans or restrictions on sugary drink sales or service, and other policies such as restrictions on marketing, requirements for labeling, or regulation of vending machine contents. It includes links to the policy language to provide sample language for entities that are considering developing new policy. Consortium members Ken Hecht from NPI, Kristine Madsen from UC Berkeley and Jennifer Falbe from UC Davis were interviewed about these topics in a July 10, 2023 story in The Daily Californian, “A unique responsibility': Campaigns work to limit soda consumption, stop UC pouring rights contracts.”
