Help Prevent Childhood Obesity: Fill Up a Water Bottle

Move over sports drink. That goes for you, too, “juice” box.

Many parents are rethinking what they pack in their preschooler’s lunch box thanks to new research on childhood obesity.

Researchers say 4- and 5-year-olds who drink one or more sugar-sweetened beverages every day are more likely to be overweight and obese, according to a study published in the journal Pediatrics.

Soda should obviously be off-limits. It’s the other beverages like sports drinks and fruit drinks that are not 100 percent juice that many adults have mistakenly thought were perfectly fine to serve children on a daily basis.

Researchers also found that children who regularly drink sugary beverages when they are 2 years old begin to have greater changes in their body mass index scores for the next two years compared to their peers who did not consistently have sugary drinks.

“…Parents and caregivers should be discouraged from providing their children with sugar-sweetened beverages, and should instead offer them calorie-free beverages and milk,” states a news release from the American Academy of Pediatrics.

+ Help a child in your life become more physically fit. Learn about the Bon Secours Youth Fitness Program.

+ Read more about healthy eating practices for children.