Official Site of The State of New Jersey
Soda Consumption among High School Students
Summary Indicator Report Data View Options
Why Is This Important?
Consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages appears to be associated with being at increased risk for overweight in children.
Definition
The percentage of adolescents who drank soda one or more times per day, in the past seven days (excluding diet/sugar-free)
Data Sources
- New Jersey Student Health Survey, Office of Student Support Services, Division of Student Services and Career Readiness, New Jersey Department of Education
(http://www.nj.gov/education/students/yrbs/) - Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs/index.htm)
How the Measure is Calculated
| Numerator: | The number of adolescents in grades 9 to 12 who drank soda one or more times per day, in the past seven days |
| Denominator: | Total number of survey respondents |
How Are We Doing?
The proportion of high school students who drink one or more servings of soda per day in 2019 is half what it was a decade earlier. Consumption is highest among Blacks (16.5%), followed by Hispanics (9.5%), Whites (9.0%), and Asians (3.4%). By 2013, the original Healthy New Jersey 2020 targets had been met by the total population, Whites, and Blacks, so more stringent targets (10% decrease from the 2013 rate) were set for those groups and a corresponding target was added for Asians. All racial/ethnic groups met their original and revised targets for 2020 except Blacks for whom the 2019 rate was greater than the 2013 rate.
How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
The rate of daily soda consumption among New Jersey high school students is significantly less than that of the nation as a whole.
More Resources
NJDOH Office of Nutrition and Fitness: [http://www.state.nj.us/health/nutrition/] CDC: [https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/nutrition/schoolnutrition.htm] US Food and Nutrition Guidelines: [https://health.gov/our-work/food-nutrition]