Parents Think Sugary Drinks Are Healthy, Study
By adopting misleading product marketing and labelling techniques to sell sugary drinks, a new study from the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity Management has claimed that parents fail to get the message that sugary drinks (beyond soda) are not healthy for children.
The study goes on to explain how many parents presume that drinks which contain high quantities of added sugar (particularly found in sports drinks, fruit drinks and flavoured water) are not healthy alternatives for children.
Director of marketing initiatives at Rudd Center and author of the study Jennifer Harris says, "Although many parents know that soda is not good for children, many still believe that sugary drinks are healthy options. The labeling and marketing for these products imply that they are nutritious, and these misperceptions may explain why so many parents buy them."
These findings comes at a difficult time for the beverage industry, where they are already combatting a steady decline in the sales of carbonated drinks over the last few years. To make up for the shortage, many beverage companies have increasingly resorted to developing sports juices, flavoured water and other milk based options as well.
Understandably, the American Beverage Association trade group has slammed the findings tabled by the study. Senior Director of Public Affairs, Christopher Gindlesperger said, "This is just the latest report coming out of an institution with a long history of bashing beverages, and it undermines parents' ability to make decisions themselves."
He goes on to add, "We provide clear, factual information on our all of our packaging - and even go beyond government requirements - to make sure parents have the information they need to make the choices that are right for them and their families. There's nothing wrong with having a sports drink or a soda or a juice drink - it's about moderation and balance. And parents get that."
