HARDBODY Fit Female News & Events

New Yorkers are being asked, “Are you pouring on the pounds?” It’s an interesting new campaign launched by the New York City Heath Department and will run for the next three months. Their approach is to make people aware that you can pack on the pounds by what you drink, not just by the food you eat. The campaign encourages people to “cut back on soda and other sugary beverages.”

New campaign in New York City.

A release today via nyc.gov states:
The campaign’s signature image – in which a bottle of soda, “sports” drink or sweetened iced tea turns to a blob of fat as it reaches the glass – is s a stark reminder of how these products can lead to obesity and related health problems. The ads urge New Yorkers to cut back on sugary beverages and quench their thirst with water, seltzer or low-fat milk instead. Many people may stir a teaspoon or two of sugar into their coffee, but few realize that a 20-ounce bottle of soda can contain 16 ½ teaspoons of sugar.

“Sugary drinks shouldn’t be a part of our everyday diet,” said New York City Health Commissioner Thomas A. Farley. “Drinking beverages loaded with sugars increases the risk of obesity and associated problems, particularly diabetes but also heart disease, stroke, arthritis and cancer.”

I like the approach because it educates people with facts. There are too many people unaware of the empty calories that exist in what they drink. Props to NYC for the campaign and I hope it does well.