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INUVIK - The latest phase of the Healthy Foods North initiative is focusing on healthy beverages.

Project co-ordinator Lindsay Beck said providing information on beverages will help people make responsible and healthy choices at the store.

Healthy Foods North program co-ordinator Lindsay Beck and other facilitators of the program are promoting healthy beverages and alternatives to sugary drinks such as Tang and Kool-Aid. - Dez Loreen/NNSL photo

Beck said the three ideal beverage choices are water, milk and 100 per cent fruit juice.

"We're also working to promote healthier choices in the stores, such as sugar-free drinks," she said.

She said the sugar-free and reduced sugar juice mixes are a better alternative to powdered drinks such as Tang and Kool-Aid.

Beck said the easiest switch to make is to diet pop from regular pop.

Beck said in the North, people consume a lot of sugar through their coffee, powdered drinks such as Tang and Kool-Aid, and pop.

Beck said people might not know what the sugar-free drink mixes are like because they're used to buying mixes high in sugar.

"We want to give people an opportunity to try those mixes," she said.

Beck said there isn't much of a price difference between regular powdered drink mixes and reduced sugar alternatives such as Crystal Light.

"I just did the price comparison," she said. "There is only a 10-cent difference per litre."

One poster for the program says you ingest 32 pounds of sugar a year if you drink one can of pop a day.

"That comes out to the weight of a small child," she said.

Beck makes presentations to businesses illustrating the amount of sugar found in certain drinks.

"We use Ziploc bags with a sticker on them, showing how much sugar is in each drink," she said.

To help the program reach a bigger audience, local businesses have agreed to host demonstrations of healthy beverage choices.

"Our interventionists are always out doing taste tests," said Beck.

"We want people to try these drinks, like smoothies, and see how easy it is to make them."

Beck said the smoothies can be made from frozen fruit, which is cost effective.

"You don't have to buy them fresh," she said.

"By using skim milk powder, you're also saving money because it's cheaper than regular milk."