Store owners as potential agents of change: energy drinks in the interior of Alaska

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Janet M. Wojcicki, Peter de Schweinitz
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2017
• Subjects: Public health interventions; energy drinks; obesity; Indigenous Health; Alaska Native Health; rural Alaska; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic; Circumpolar Health; International Journal of Circumpolar Health; Alaska
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2017.1400362; https://doaj.org/article/7c2a1d6db74943559bdd2fc9a9624478

Childhood obesity disproportionately impacts disadvantaged communities, including Alaska Native children. In part, lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables and over consumption of sugar sweetened beverages including energy drinks contribute to excessive weight gain in Alaska Native youth. This commentary reports the possibility of storeowners and workers partnering with community members to limit sales of nutrient-poor energy drinks through point-of-sale counselling in rural communities in the interior of Alaska. This model of intervention may be useful to implement in areas where there are limited health workers or others that can serve as health educators. This study reports preliminary evidence from rural Alaska and from other Arctic communities that store workers may effectively improve community health status by limiting or promoting specific products. Storeowners or workers may be helpful partners in the fight against childhood obesity as they are present at the point of sale of high-risk beverages to Alaska Native youth.