Background The association between sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption and colorectal cancer (CRC) risk remains unclear and published data are limited. Methods The analytic cohort included 99,798 women, free of cancer at baseline, from the California Teachers Study, a longitudinal cohort comprised of 133,477 female teachers and administrators who were active or recently retired members of the California State Teachers Retirement System in 1995. SSB consumption constituted caloric soft drinks, sweetened bottled waters and teas, and fruit drinks, derived from a self-administered food frequency questionnaire. Consumption was divided into four categories: Rare or never, >rare/never to <1 serving/week, �1 serving/week to <1 serving/day, and �1 serving/day. CRC endpoints were based on annual linkage with California Cancer Registry, defined as first diagnosis of CRC, and classified following the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program coding system. Multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards models were used to generate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for assessing the association between SSB consumption and incident CRC. Results A total of 1,318 incident CRC cases were identified over 20 years of follow-up (54.5% proximal colon and 45.5% distal colorectum). Compared with rare/never consumers, the multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CI) were 1.14 (0.86, 1.53) for total CRC; 1.11 (0.73, 1.68) for proximal colon; and 1.22 (0.80, 1.86) for distal colorectum cancers among women consuming � 1 serving/day of SSBs.

Background Sugar‐sweetened beverage ( SSB ) consumption has been associated with cardiometabolic risk. However, the association between total and type of SSB intake and incident cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) end points such as myocardial infarction, stroke, and revascularization is limited. Methods and Results We examined the prospective association of baseline SSB consumption with incident CVD in 106 178 women free from CVD and diabetes mellitus in the CTS (California Teachers Study), a cohort of female teachers and administrators, followed since 1995. SSB s were defined as caloric soft drinks, sweetened bottled waters or teas, and fruit drinks, and derived from a self‐administered food frequency questionnaire. CVD end points were based on annual linkage with statewide inpatient hospitalization records. Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess the association between SSB consumption and incident CVD . A total of 8848 CVD incident cases were documented over 20 years of follow‐up. After adjusting for potential confounders, we observed higher hazard ratios ( HRs ) for CVD (HR, 1.19; 95% CI, 1.06–1.34), revascularization (HR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.04–1.54]), and stroke (HR, 1.21; 95% CI, 1.04–1.41) in women who consumed ≥1 serving per day of SSB s compared with rare/never consumers. We also observed a higher risk of CVD in women who consumed ≥1 serving per day of fruit drinks (HR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.00–2.01 [ P trend=0.021]) and caloric soft drinks (HR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.05–1.44 [ P trend=0.0002]), compared with rare/never consumers. Conclusions Consuming ≥1 serving per day of SSB was associated with CVD , revascularization, and stroke. SSB intake might be a modifiable dietary target to reduce risk of CVD among women.

There is a need to identify innovative strategies whereby individuals, families, and communities can learn to access and prepare affordable and nutritious foods, in combination with evidence-based guidance about diet and lifestyle. These approaches also need to address issues of equity and sustainability. Teaching Kitchens (TKs) are being created as educational classrooms and translational research laboratories to advance such strategies. Moreover, TKs can be used as revenue-generating research sites in universities and hospitals performing sponsored research, and, potentially, as instruments of cost containment when placed in accountable care settings and self-insured companies. Thus, TKs can be considered for inclusion in future health professional training programs, and the recently published Biden–Harris Administration Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health echoes this directive. Recent innovations in the ability to provide TK classes virtually suggest that their impact may be greater than originally envisioned. Although the impact of TK curricula on behaviors, outcomes and costs of health care is preliminary, it warrants the continued attention of medical and public health thought leaders involved with Food Is Medicine initiatives.