Well, that didn’t take long. Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced yesterday that NYC would be banning sugary drinks if they came in containers bigger than 16 ounces. And today, the American Beverage Association is pushing back with an ad that says, basically, “Do not believe that science over there! Believe this science that says soda is tooootally fine for you.”

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Just for perspective, the human stomach can hold about two to four liters of stuff, and 16 fluid ounces would take up about an eighth to a quarter of that space. Ew.

Marion Nestle rebuts the ad’s claims:

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Sugary drinks — especially large ones — make sense as a target for a portion size intervention.

  • They have calories but no nutrients (“liquid candy”).
  • The larger the serving size, the more calories they contain.
  • They are widely consumed, often to the extent of hundreds and sometimes thousands of calories a day.
  • Research links them to obesity (people who habitually consume sugary drinks tend to have worse diets and weigh more than those who don’t).
  • People tend to drink the amount that is in the container.