Flavored milk provides needed nutrients.

• Position: Calcium - Nutrition and children - Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

Long known to be a favorite among kids, flavored milk gives mothers reasons to smile, too. Children who consume it drink more milk and have higher calcium intakes than those who don't, according to researchers who evaluated data from the Department of Agriculture's Continuing Survey of Food Intakes of Individuals. The study of the typical beverage intake of 3,888 youngsters showed that kids who drink flavored milk consume less nutrient-void soft drinks and fewer fruit drinks (those containing less than 10% fruit juice) than those who don't drink flavored milk.

"By encouraging flavored milk consumption, moms can help reverse the trend toward soft drink and fruit drink consumption, which are crowding out more-nutritious beverages like milk, and negatively impacting children's diet quality," indicates Rachel Johnson, professor of nutrition, University of Vermont, Burlington. Beverage choices can play an important role in the overall quality of a child's diet. In a previous study by Johnson...