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Soda-free summer in The City, says Newsom
By: Erin Sherbert
Examiner Staff Writer
06/21/10 1:08 PM PDT
Mayor Gavin Newsom today declared this summer Soda Free in San Francisco. That’s right — the mayor wants all residents to drink water instead of cola.
“San Francisco has some of the best water in the world,” Newsom said in a statement. “Grab a reusable bottle, and fill it up. You’re being good to your body, your pocketbook and the environment all at once.”
For the past three years, his Soda Free Summer Campaign has aimed to increase awareness about the health impacts of drinking artificially sweetened beverages while addressing the public health crisis of obesity, inactivity and poor nutrition, and promote Newsom’s fitness challenge, Shape Up San Francisco.
The California Center for Public Health Advocacy recently presented evidence demonstrating a direct link between soda consumption and obesity. A 2007 California Health Interview Survey showed that in San Francisco, roughly 43 percent of all adults are overweight or obese, according to the Mayor’s Office.
In April, Newsom issued an executive directive to city departments instructing them to ban sugar sweetened beverages from vending machines.
Let’s just hope the Mayor practice what he preaches.
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