Policy on vending machines in schools.

* For the purposes of this statement, the term soft-drinks refers to such beverages as sodas, fruit juices, and sports drinks. Purpose The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recognizes that targeted marketing and easy access to sweetened foods and beverages (acidulated carbonated and noncarbon-ated) by children and adolescents may increase the amount and frequency of their consumption, which, in turn, may contribute to an increase in caries risk and a negative influence on overall nutrition and health. Methods The revision of this policy included a new systematic literature search of the MEDLINE/Pubmed database using the following parameters: Terms: " schools " , " vending machines " , AND " dental " ; Fields: all fields; Limits: within the last 10 years, humans, English, and clinical trials. The update also included a review of the American Academy of Pediatrics' policy on soft drinks in schools 1 and the US Department of Agriculture's policy on school meals. 2 Fifty articles matched these criteria. Papers for review were chosen from these articles and from references within selected articles. When data did not appear sufficient or were inconclusive, recommendations were based upon expert and/or consensus opinion by experienced researchers and clinicians.