Controlled trial of a workplace sales ban on sugar-sweetened beverages.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the effectiveness of a workplace sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) sales ban on reducing SSB consumption in employees, including those with cardiometabolic disease risk factors.

DESIGN

A controlled trial of ethnically diverse, full-time employees who consumed SSB heavily (sales ban 315; control 342). Outcomes included standardised measures of change in SSB consumption in the workplace (primary) and at home between baseline and 6 months post-sales ban.

SETTING

Sutter Health, a large non-profit healthcare delivery system in Northern California.

PARTICIPANTS

Full-time employees at Sutter Health screened for heavy SSB consumption.

RESULTS

Participants were 66·1 % non-White. On average, participants consumed 34·7 ounces (about 1 litre) of SSB per d, and the majority had an elevated baseline BMI (mean = 29·5). In adjusted regression analyses, those exposed to a workplace SSB sales ban for 6 months consumed 2·7 (95 % CI -4·9, -0·5) fewer ounces of SSB per d while at work, and 4·3 (95 % CI -8·4, -0·2) fewer total ounces per d, compared to controls. Sales ban participants with an elevated BMI or waist circumference had greater post-intervention reductions in workplace SSB consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

Workplace sales bans can reduce SSB consumption in ethnically diverse employee populations, including those at higher risk for cardiometabolic disease.