We all know that sugary drinks are bad for our health. Previous research revealed that sweetened drinks such as Diet Coke can dramatically raise heart risk.
While energy drinks like Red Bull can increase your chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
"Energy drinks are packed with sugar in order to raise our blood glucose levels and give us a quick energy fix," added the expert, from nutricentre.com.
"High glucose levels cause our pancreas to release insulin, which – often repeated – can increase our chances of developing diabetes type 2."
But despite the shocking health warnings teenagers, aged between 11 and 18, are drinking almost a bathtub full of sugary drinks on average a year, according to new calculations from Cancer Research UK.
The figures, calculated from National Diet and Nutrition Survey data, also revealed that four to 10 year olds are drinking the equivalent of almost half a bathtub full of sugary drinks each year.
The figures, calculated from National Diet and Nutrition Survey data, also revealed that four to 10 year olds are drinking the equivalent of almost half a bathtub full of sugary drinks each year.
This means 11 to 18 year olds are consuming three times the recommended limit, with sugary drinks being their main source of added sugar.
While younger children are downing two times the recommended amount. This gigantic increase in sugar is leading to a child obesity crisis.
Obese children are around five times more likely to grow into obese adults and carrying too much weight increases the risk of cancer as well as other life-threatening diseases.
A recent Cancer Research UK report showed that a 20p per litre sugar tax could prevent 3.7 million cases of obesity over the next decade – therefore help prevent cancer.
Alison Cox, director of prevention at Cancer Research UK, said: “It’s shocking that teenagers are drinking the equivalent of a bathtub of sugary drinks a year.
“We urgently need to stop this happening and the good news is that the Government’s sugar tax will play a crucial role in helping to curb this behaviour.
"The ripple effect of a small tax on sugary drinks is enormous, and it will give soft drinks companies a clear incentive to reduce the amount of sugar in drinks.
"When coupled with the Government’s plan to reduce sugar in processed food, we could really see an improvement to our diets," she said.
“But the Government can do more to give the next generation a better chance, by closing the loop hole on junk food advertising on TV before the 9pm watershed. The UK has an epidemic on its hands, and needs to act now.”
But the British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) revealed that teenagers are actaully consumming less sugar for soft drinks than in previous years.
Gavin Partington, BSDA Director General, said: “The latest Government NDNS data actually shows that teenagers’ sugar intake from soft drinks is down by 8%.
"This is not surprising since soft drinks companies’ action on reformulation and smaller pack sizes has helped drive a 17% cut in sugar consumed from soft drinks since 2012.
“The soft drinks sector is ahead of the game and in 2015 became the only category to set a voluntary calorie reduction target of 20% by 2020. We also voluntarily extended the advertising rules regarding under 16s to all online media.”
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