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Sugary drinks, like sodas and energy drinks, have become a ubiquitous part of daily life for many people worldwide. However, a groundbreaking study highlights the alarming health risks associated with their consumption, linking them to over 3 million new cases of diabetes and heart disease in 2020 alone. This lesson dives into the global patterns of sugary drink consumption, their ties to social status, and the role of marketing in their prevalence. Discover the urgent need for policy changes and personal choices to address this growing health crisis.

Study links sugary drinks to poor health around the world

Warm-up question: Do you often drink sugary drinks like soda or energy drinks? How do they fit into your daily routine, if at all?

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MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Having a soda with a meal has become a normal part of the day for many people, like having coffee with breakfast. But a new study looks at how sodas and other sugary drinks are contributing to poor health around the world. NPR’s Rachel Carlson reports.

RACHEL CARLSON, BYLINE: The new study in Nature Medicine estimates sugary drinks contributed to over 3 million new cases of diabetes and heart disease combined in 2020.

DARIUSH MOZAFFARIAN: That’s a lot of suffering, and I think our results really highlight this is not a small deal.

CARLSON: Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian directs the Food is Medicine Institute at Tufts University. He and his team found that in Latin America and the Caribbean, for example, sugary drinks like sodas and energy drinks also contributed to nearly a quarter of all new diabetes cases. But Dr. Mozaffarian says they saw the biggest increases in sub-Saharan Africa over the last few decades.

MOZAFFARIAN: This is not just, oh, no big deal. You know, let’s just have a few sodas here and there. I think it’s very important to take care of this problem globally.

CARLSON: But researchers say that in the last few decades, consumption of sugary drinks has become integrated into people’s daily lives, especially in some countries among those with higher levels of education and in urban areas. Laura Lara-Castor is a study author and postdoc at University of Washington. She says in many communities, sugary drinks like soda are seen as a sign of status.

LAURA LARA-CASTOR: This is the – kind of like selling the American dream in a way.

CARLSON: Some researchers have seen this firsthand. Richmond Aryeetey is a public health nutritionist in Ghana, and he says he’s noticed more sugary drinks now than when he was growing up.

RICHMOND ARYEETEY: You are likely to see soda in the house on festive occasions. These days, it’s ubiquitous in the sense that it is in almost every experience they have. At school, there is advertising – on TV, on video games and on billboards. So it’s, like, in your face everywhere.

CARLSON: He sees this change as a combination of marketing and the greater availability of processed foods.

ARYEETEY: It’s like a perfect storm gathering.

CARLSON: The paper does have some limitations. Dr. Frank Hu is a public health researcher with Harvard but didn’t work on the study. He says this work, like a lot of nutritional studies, relies on self-reporting, which could mean the data underestimates the size of the problem. But Dr. Hu and the study authors all say the work underscores the urgent need for policies to reduce people’s intake of sugar across the globe.

Rachel Carlson, NPR News.

Vocabulary and Phrases:

1. Diabetes: A chronic disease where the body cannot properly regulate blood sugar levels, leading to health complications.
2. Small/big deal: A phrase used to describe something as either insignificant (small deal) or very important (big deal).
3. Integrated: Combined or included as a necessary part of something.
4. Status: A person’s social or professional standing, often associated with respect or importance in society.
5. Firsthand: Experienced or seen directly rather than being learned about from others.
6. Festive occasions: Special events or celebrations, often marked by parties, meals, or other joyful activities.
7. Ubiquitous: Present or appearing everywhere.
8. Billboards: Large outdoor advertisements placed in public spaces, often along roads or highways.
9. In your face: Very obvious or unavoidable, often in an aggressive or intrusive way.
10. Perfect storm: A situation where a combination of factors creates an exceptionally bad or difficult outcome.
11. Underscore: To emphasize or highlight the importance of something.

Comprehension Questions:

1. According to the study, how have sugary drinks contributed to health problems globally?
2. What changes in consumption patterns of sugary drinks have been observed in sub-Saharan Africa?
3. How do sugary drinks relate to social status in certain countries, according to Laura Lara-Castor?
4. What marketing tactics have made sugary drinks more prevalent, as noted by Richmond Aryeetey?
5. What does Dr. Frank Hu suggest about the limitations of the study, and how does it still emphasize the importance of reducing sugar intake?

Discussion Questions:

1. How do you think sugary drinks have become so integrated into daily life in many countries?
2. In your experience, do you associate certain foods or drinks with social status? Why might this be the case?
3. Have you noticed marketing for sugary drinks? How does it affect people’s choices?
4. What do you think could be done to reduce the consumption of sugary drinks globally?
5. Have you ever tried to reduce your sugar intake? What challenges did you face?

Vocabulary Practice

Fill in the blanks using the target vocabulary words/phrases.

1. The doctor explained that consuming too much sugar could increase the risk of developing ________.
2. The ad campaign was so ________ that you couldn’t avoid it, whether on TV or on billboards.
3. For many families, soda used to be reserved for ________, but now it’s a daily drink.
4. The rise in sugary drink consumption is seen as a ________ problem that needs immediate attention.
5. The study ________ the importance of reducing sugar in people’s diets to prevent health issues.
6. Growing up in the city, he experienced the effects of marketing for sugary drinks ________, seeing them in schools and homes.
7. A combination of poor diet and lack of exercise created the ________ for a public health crisis.
8. In many countries, owning certain brands of clothes or drinks is associated with ________.
9. The way sugary drinks have become ________ in schools and public spaces is a concern for health experts.
10. The debate over sugary drinks isn’t a ________; it’s a major issue affecting public health.