Screentime and soft drinks

Extensive sedentary time, i.e. (uninterrupted) sitting for too long, and especially sitting in from of TV's or other 'screens' have been associated with unfavorable cardiometabolic health. Apart from sitting too long itself, TV time may be accompanied by snacking and sugary drinks, which may lead to excess calorie intake, unnecessary weight gain, and eventually to overweight and obesity. In a study just published in the journal PLOS One we explored if children who spend more time sitting behind or before 'screens' TV, PC, tablet et cetera, i.e. 'screen-based sedentary behavior' drink more sugar-sweetened soft drinks. The study also assessed if such an association between screen-based sitting time and sugary drinks intakes differed according to level of education of the parents.
Data were collected from 7886 children participating in the EuropeaN Energy balance Research to prevent excessive weight Gain among Youth (ENERGY) survey conducted in eight European countries.
In six of the eight included countries, children who reported to watch more TV also reported to drink more soft drinks, but there was no significant association between computer use and soft drink consumption in six of the eight countries. In Norway and Hungary, the association between TV viewing and soft drinks was stronger for children from lower educated parents.