Youth activists, teachers and health advocates across the state will celebrate Rev Your Bev Day on May 15, giving residents the chance to dump out their sodas and sugary soft drinks and choose water for a day.
According to revyourbev.com, sugary drinks are the single largest source of calories in the American diet and can lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes and even death.
“The problem with sugary drinks goes well beyond being hyper,” said Bryan Price, Health and Wellness Program Director at Danville Parks and Recreation. “For every sugary drink a child consumes, the risk of becoming overweight increases by 60 percent. This is also a concern for adults. It takes an hour of walking to burn off the 240 calories in just one 20-ounce bottle of soda.”
The Parks and Recreation Department is celebrating the day on Wednesday by offering residents a chance to trade in their beverage for a bottle of water from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. The CheckPoint Team will be on hand at the Riverwalk trail entrance at the Crossing at the Dan as well to offer blood pressure checks and BMI measurements.
Participants will also be offered the chance to participate in a state-wide data collection effort organized by Rev Your Bev. For more information on the Rev Your Bev initiative, visit www.revyourbev.com and click on “About.”
Rev Your Bev Day is organized by Y Street, Virginia’s largest youth-led movement. Y Street is a program of the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth. For more information about the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth, visit www.vfhy.org.