von Fraunhofer.qxd

The consumption of soft drinks has increased dramatically over past several decades; the soft drink industry is reported to produce 10 billion 192-ounce cases per year. Over a 50-year period, annual soft drink production appears to have increased fivefold, from 100 12-ounce cans per person in 1947 to nearly 600 12ounce cans per person in 1997. Looking at it another way, the average person in 1947 consumed approximately two cans of soft drinks per week, while the average person in 1997 consumed approximately 12 cans of soft drinks per week, or nearly two cans per day. The greatest increase in soft drink consumption has occurred among children and adolescents; nearly 40% of preschool children drink more than 250 mL (8.0 ounces) of soft drinks per day. The average consumption of soft drinks in the U.S. in 2002 was approximately 53 gallons per year, or 16 ounces per day, which represents 24% of the recommended daily fluid intake of 67 ounces. Although no distinction is made between regular and diet soft drinks, recent figures (examining the period from 1994–1996) indicate that soft drink consumption among 12-to-19-year-old boys is 28 ounces (800 mL) per day; among 12-to19-year-old girls, the rate of consumption is 21 ounces (600 mL) per day. In recent years, diet (that is, reducedcalorie) versions of popular drinks have increased in relation to their regular beverage counterparts (that is, those containing sucrose or fructose). In 1997, artificially-sweetened diet sodas accounted for 24% of soft-drink sales, an increase of 16% since 1970. There also is a growing trend within North America (and perhaps throughout the developed world) toward increased consumption of noncola drinks and nontraditional beverages (for example, pre-packaged coffees and Accepted: March 29, 2004