Most of us know that soda and other sugary drinks aren’t good for us or for the health of our teeth, but this is usually something that we just keep in the back of our mind and fail to think about when we are looking in the office vending machine for something to drink. However, a new study has shown that warning labels that detail the health risks associated with those beverages might convince you not to drink them.
ABOUT THE STUDY
A recent study conducted at the University of Pennsylvania aimed to see how warning labels on sugary drinks affected parent actions when it came to buying the drinks for their kids.
In the experiment, about 2,400 parents were given online surveys that asked them to choose a beverage from their child. There were 12 drinks that were sweetened with sugar and 8 low-sugar options, including diet soda, unsweetened juice, and water.
In some situations, parents were randomly shown calorie icons or warning labels when the pictures of the sugar-sweetened rinks were displayed to them. When no health information was provided, 60% of parents picked a sugary drink, but with warning labels, only 40% chose a beverage that was sweetened with sugar.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE TEETH
This study showed surprising results, but it could be good news for the teeth. While many parents understand that soda is bad for the teeth because of the high sugar content, they don’t often realize that tea, juices, and sports drinks contain a lot of sugar that can make them just as bad.
This study shows that labels could be one way to discourage people from consuming sugary drinks, although more research is needed to see how warnings would work out in the real world rather than in a simulated, laboratory setting.
Please contact us if you have any questions about the warning labels on sugary drinks.