BY DONNA WESTFALL

Last year we heard Deborah Kravitz speak before the Crescent City, city council about the “Rethink Your Drink” program.  This was to educate and encourage children to get off sugary drinks like soda.

Beautiful and talented singer, Beyonce, has just signed a $50 million deal to represent Pepsi Cola.

• The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and many of her fans are now urging the singer to reconsider her collaboration with Pepsi, citing the many well-known health dangers of drinking soda.
• Quoting from Dr. Mercola’s website at www.mercola.com, CSPI writes:
  

  “More than any other category of food or beverage, sugary drinks are associated with increased risk of weight gain and obesity, which increase the risk of diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease… In fact, each additional sugary drink consumed per day increases the likelihood of a child becoming obese by 60 percent. Each soda consumed per day increases the risk of heart disease in men by 19 percent. Drinking one or two sugary drinks per day increases one’s risk for type 2 diabetes by 25 percent…

  You occupy a unique position in the cultural life of this country and are an inspiring role model for millions of young people. Your image is one of success, health, talent, fitness and glamour. But by lending your name and image to PepsiCo, you are associating those positive attributes with a product that is quite literally sickening Americans.”

  Growing up in Los Angeles, my family ate organic foods from the health store.  My parents invested in a reverse osmosis water filter.  I couldn’t stand those sweet soda’s like Coca Cola, Dr. Pepper and Pepsi Cola.  My neighbor, Linda, was raised on soda’s and by the age of 20, had diabetes.  These days, when someone offers me a soda I water it down so I can drink it.

  In one study British researchers revealed that kids who ate a predominantly processed food diet at age 3 had lower IQ scores at age 8 1/2. For each measured increase in processed foods, participants had a 1.67-point decrease in IQ. As you might suspect, the opposite also held true, with those eating healthier diets experiencing higher IQ levels. For each measured increase in dietary score, which meant the child was eating more fruits and vegetables for instance, there was a 1.2-point increase in IQ.

  Someone as seemingly intelligent as Beyonce has clearly made a poor choice.  Someone in her position needs to recognize the onous put upon her as a role model.  I can’t imagine that she would serve up Pepsi Cola to her own daughter.  It’s a further tragedy that Beyonce would support and be a part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative to encourage good health among children while accepting $50 million from a company clearly not int he business to promote good health for children.  Such hypocrisy.

  We’ve seen what twisted lobbying can do with the water fluoridation issue.  Vested interests touting it being “safe and effective” going on 67 years with $100,000,000 lobbying budget by American Dental Association. It literally took years to re-educate the local public to the hazards of “fluoride.” While it’s ultimately the parents responsibility for the food and beverages that go into their children’s mouths; having huge stars promoting products like PepsiCo will have an impact on their choices.

  In a nation that comprises 5% of the worlds population, yet consumes 50% of the pharmaceuticals; wouldn’t it be wiser to campaign against products like sugary soda’s?  I would expect someone of Beyonces’ caliber to be on the side of seeking better health  not cashing in at the expense of our children.