Kids Drastically Decrease Sweets Consumption Since 1998

WASHINGTONChildren today eat significantly fewer sugary sweets compared to 15 years ago, according to data released to USA Today by NPD Group.

The average child consumed the 20 most common sweets around 126 times fewer last year compared to 1998, including 62 fewer occasions of drinking carbonated soft drinks and 22 fewer times eating sugary cereals. Adults consumed an averages of 49 fewer sweets compared to 15 years ago.

Numbers released by NPD are based on daily eating diaries kept by 5,000 participants among 2,000 U.S. households.

Categories like carbonated soft drinks, pre-sweetened cereals and fruit drinks and juices have experienced  double-digit declines in annual servings by U.S. children, according to the NPD study.

Despite these decreasing numbers, kids still  consume 14% more sweets annually compared to adults, and 98% of adults and children still indulge in one of the 20 "sweet" products at least once every two weeks.

 NPD also reported that last year children drank fruit juices 16 fewer times, ate cookies eight fewer times, ate ice cream seven fewer times and had cake five fewer times compared to 1998.