California’s Central Coast Surveys Residents About Sugary Drink Consumption

Share On Social!

In Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, 57 percent of adults and teens are overweight or obese; in San Benito County, the number is even more alarming at 70 percent, according to the Monterey County Health Department.

As part of their response to the epidemic, the Nutritional and Fitness Collaborative of the Central Coast (NFCCC), a collection of more than 50 organizations dedicated to improving the health of their communities, set out to understand sugary drink consumption on the Central Coast.  The findings of their research were released this month at a press conference at the Monterey County Health Department.

A few survey highlights include:

• The consumption of sugary drinks was higher than water consumption.
• On average, for every glass of water consumed, 1.3 glasses of sugary beverages were consumed.
• Of the types of sugary beverages consumed, soda, sweetened drinks (such as tea, juice drinks, punches) and coffee beverages were most commonly reported.
• Adolescents (11-17 year olds) drank 4.5 times more sugary drinks than water.

The NFCCC Leadership team has recommendations for individuals, schools, health care providers, employers and more.

Read the full report here!