NEAT Fact Sheet “Beverages & Sweeteners”
There are many beverage choices for kids to choose from, some better than others!
Beverage	Nutrients	Benefits	Calories/ 8 oz. serving
Milk	Calcium, vitamin D, protein, potassium, riboflavin, niacin	Helps build strong bones, reduces risk of osteoporosis and high blood pressure	2%: 121 cal Skim: 90 cal
100% fruit juice	Vitamins A, C, & D, folate, potassium, calcium	High in phytonutrients that can help prevent diseases, good way to obtain fruits and vegetables servings	Orange juice: 120 cal Apple juice: 120 cal Grape juice: 120 cal Cranberry: 70 cal
Water	Some bottled water contains fluoride	Keeps your body hydrated without any calories	0 cal
Soda	Sodium	None	Sprite: 96 cal/ 8 oz. ** Coke: 97 cal/ 8 oz. Fanta Orange: 110 cal/ 8 oz
	**Note: One can of Sprite (12 oz.) contains 140 cal (more of a typical serving) and one can of Coke contains 155 cal. McDonalds small Sprite and Coke contain 150 cal, medium contains 210 cal, and large contains 310 cal.
	Recommendations: Drink plenty of water (unlimited), 1-2 glasses of milk and juice/day, and soda sparingly (drink diet soda if given the choice). There are also many alternative sweeteners that are used to replace sugar and reduce calories in beverages. Here are a few popular ones approved by the FDA:
Sweetener	Source	Products used in	Metabolism
Splenda (Sucralose)	Sugar with 3 Cl molecules added	Most foods- beverages and confectionaries especially	Body does not recognize it so it passes through
Truvia (Rebiana)	Stevia plant (rebiana part)	Beverages and baked goods	Mostly leaves the body unchanged
Nutrasweet (Aspartame)	Aspartic acid and phenylalanine	Beverages, yogurt, frozen desserts	Metabolized like an amino acid