The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine
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This study identifies trends in the availability of various food choices in United States' middle and high schools from 2004 to 2007, and examines the potential associations between such food availability and students' self-reported eating habits and body mass index (BMI)-related outcomes. ⋯ United States secondary schools are making progress in the types of foods offered to students, with food items of lower nutritional value becoming less prevalent in recent years. Continued monitoring of food environment trends may help clarify whether and how such factors relate to youth health outcomes.
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Soft drink consumption has been linked with higher energy intake, obesity, and poorer health. Fiscal pricing policies such as soda taxes may lower soda consumption and, in turn, reduce weight among U.S. adolescents. ⋯ Current state-level tax rates are not found to be significantly associated with adolescent weight outcomes. It is likely that taxes would need to be raised substantially to detect significant associations between taxes and adolescent weight.