http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2005/04/25/nunavut-pop050425.html
'Say no to pop,' Nunavut residents told
Last Updated Mon, 25 Apr 2005 11:44:18 EDT
CBC News
IQALUIT - Health officials in Nunavut are calling on residents to "Drop
the Pop" this week in an effort to raise awareness about tooth decay,
obesity and diabetes in the northern territory.
The five-day anti-soft drink campaign kicks off Monday, aimed at both
students and adults in Nunavut's population of 27,000.
Pop machines can be popular in schools (CP file photo).
Ainiak Korgak, the manager of health promotion with Nunavut's health
department, says Inuit have increasingly been choosing soft drinks and
other processed foods over traditional diets, and over healthier
imported items such as milk and juice.
"A community will run out of pop and they'll charter a plane to bring
pop, so that tells you how much people love their pop," he said.
A Coca-Cola manufacturing plant that opened its doors in Iqaluit a
decade ago produces up to 4,000 two-litre bottles and 20,000 smaller
bottles a day, just to quench the territory's thirst.
Diabetes isn't yet a serious problem in Nunavut, but obesity rates are
rising and tooth decay is a big concern.
By this fall, more than 750 infants in the territory will have had some
or all of their teeth pulled out.
Amy Caughey, a nutritionist with the Nunavut government, blames the
nine to 12 teaspoons of sugar in each bottle of soft drink and the fact
that some parents start giving their children soft drink while they're
still babies.
"If babies have pop in a bottle, or younger children are getting a lot
of pop, they're not getting the things that they need to grow and it
can be quite harmful," she said.
Schools, grocery stores and other businesses are taking part in the
"Drop the Pop" project.
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TC