The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran an interesting article recently entitled Teens back off sugary drinks.
Exerpt:
Morgan Stanley's Bill Pecoriello predicts carbonated soft drink sales volume in the United States will decline 1.5 percent annually during the next five years. That's twice the rate of decline in 2005. The projections are based on a new consumer survey the firm conducted with 1,550 consumers.
As one might guess, this was a business article and quoted spokesmen from Pepsi and Coca-Cola, neither of whom directly addressed the health issues of their products.
"We offer a wide range of different beverages for different people for different times of the day," said the Pepsi spokesman.
Coke spokesman Ben Deutsch is quoted as saying, "We believe we can continue to grow the category by generating excitement with new innovation, such as Coke Zero, Coke Blak, the relaunch of Sprite and our energy drink portfolio, and high-impact marketing efforts."
The article pointed out "Major beverage companies have introduced canned coffees, sparkling flavored waters, energy drinks and other new products in recent years."
Also mentioned in the article is the current buzzword "obesity epidemic."
What was glaring in its absence, however, was good, old bottle water. Also not mentioned were the many benefits of having a home water cooler or dispenser, and the role it can play in weaning teens and others from the soft drink habit.
Health experts may disagree on how much water a person drinks per day, but they all agree on the health benefits of water.
And what better way to dispense that water than through a water cooler.
