Hospitals Shifting Away From Sugar Drinks, Report Finds

Are sugary drinks in America's hospitals finally getting their discharge papers? That's the case for at least 11 hospitals highlighted in a new paper from the nonprofit groups Center for Science in the Public Interest and Health Care Without Harm. Those hospitals have eliminated or sharply reduced the availability of sugar drinks from patient menus, cafeterias, vending machines, and elsewhere on hospital campuses, while increasing access to and availability of water and other healthier beverages.

"Physicians, nurses, and hospital administrators see firsthand how Americans struggle with obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other debilitating soda-related conditions," said CSPI director of health promotion policy Jim O'Hara. "And they increasingly realize that the availability of soda and other sugar drinks is inconsistent with hospitals' work to treat and prevent disease."