Georgia’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamp) along with their four Partner Agencies, are launching Hydrate My State, a campaign tailored for SNAP eligible Georgians to encourage more water consumption instead of sugary beverages.

The campaign, led by the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) Office of Family Independence (OFI) SNAP Nutrition Education Program (SNAP-Ed), will consist of in-person infused water tastings, recipes on how to incorporate more water into daily life, nutrition fact labels on why water is so important, and formal shareable promotions.

“This comes as a direct effort towards improving the water consumption practices of families that rely on us. We consider it our responsibility to provide nutritional support and to alleviate the guesswork for families whose primary focus is putting food on the table,” said Jon Anderson, OFI Chief Deputy Division Director.

On average, six in 10 youth (roughly 60%) and five in 10 adults (roughly 49%) drink a sugar-sweetened beverage on a given day. These sugary drinks like your favorite sodas, juices, sports drinks, and more, increase the risk for cavities, heart attacks, high blood pressure, type II diabetes, fatty liver disease, and cancer (Centers for Disease Control [CDC], 2021).

SNAP-Ed supports grand scale healthy lifestyle changes which includes small shifts towards drinking more water and less sugary beverages. Hydrate My State represents most recent efforts to bring awareness and education to a much-needed state-wide issue.

Anderson said, “The data that we have seen played a huge part in our SNAP-Ed team’s decision to implement the Hydrate My State project. It is our sincere hope to help develop lifelong practices that will ensure healthy beverage consumption for our families.”

The SNAP-Ed partner agencies will also be conducting in-person water tasting demonstrations throughout the month of September. The main event, Hydrate My State Day, will take place on September 15, 2021, at locations across the state. These demonstrations will showcase easy to use recipes that incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables to enhance the taste of water. It will also include recipe cards, fact sheets, nutrition panel information, and how to sign up for nutrition education classes.

For more information on where to find a Hydrate My State event near you or about the campaign, visit https://dfcs.georgia.gov/food-stamps/snap-ed/hydrate-my-state.

Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). Get the Facts: Sugar-sweetened Beverages and Consumption. Retrieved on July 9, 2021 from https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/data-statistics/sugar-sweetened-beverages-intake.html

Moran, A., Musicus, A., Gorski, M., et al. (2018). Increases in Sugary Drink Marketing During Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefit Issuance in New York. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 55(1), 55-62. doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2018.03.012

Praxis Project. (2020). Marketing and Retail Environment. Retrieved on July 12, 2021 from https://www.thepraxisproject.org/sdoh/marketing-and-retail-environment%20About%20Georgia%20.

About DFCS

DFCS administers the Georgia Food Stamp Program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), a federally funded program that provides monthly benefits to low-income households to help pay for the cost of food. DFCS is responsible for issuance of SNAP, Medicaid and TANF assistance to low-income families; assistance for out-of-work parents to help them get back on their feet as well as multiple support services and programs to help families in need.