Beverages in the diets of American teenagers

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of beverages, particularly soft drinks, in the diets of American teenagers by analyzing data collected in the Nationwide Food Consumption Survey, 1977-78. Interviewers obtained 24-hour recalls of dietary intake, and respondents completed diet records for the following 2 days. Variation in beverage intake was examined by eating occasion, season, day of the week, region, urbanization, race, age, sex, and household income. Soft drink and milk intakes were negatively correlated (r = -.22). Soft drinks were just as likely to be drunk at lunch or supper as for snacks. Those results suggest that teenagers may have substituted soft drinks for milk at meals. The nutritional impact of soft drink consumption was assessed by determining the part correlations of soft drink intake with intakes of energy and 14 nutrients, while controlling for 19 variables related to time, location, and personal and household characteristics. The negative part correlations of soft drink intake with intakes of calcium (-0.11), magnesium (-0.06), riboflavin (-0.09), vitamin A (-0.08), and ascorbic acid (-0.06) indicate that soft drinks may contribute to low intakes of those nutrients by some teenagers.