Major medical groups are continuing the battle against sugary drinks

A renewed battle against an old enemy has been waged, and it's sure to make Michael Bloomberg and Leslie Knope proud.

Stat News reported on Monday that two prominent medical groups — the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Heart Association — conjointly released a list of policy recommendations to reduce the consumption of nefarious sugary beverages.

The groups' research shows that added sugars are only supposed to contribute 10 percent of the calories consumed by youth. But instead that number hovers around 17 percent, which has led to "a high prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity," particularly among those who are socioeconomically vulnerable. Nearly half of those excess calories from added sugars come from sweetened drinks, the groups found.

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Among the policies suggested, which would be implemented at any of the local, state, or federal levels, are excise taxes to increase the price of the drinks, government backing of efforts to decrease sugary drink marketing, and increased marketing of and access to healthy foods in and drinks in federal nutrition assistance programs. Read the full report at The American Academy of Pediatrics.