Like most children of her age, Arushi Mathur, 9, likes the good things in life — chocolates, ice creams, chips, burgers or even that bottle of cola. And her mother does oblige her. “Children will always want these things, after all,” laughs Meha Mathur, her mother.

“However, my daughter seems to display a heightened sense of awareness as well and she often returns from school to tell me that guzzling soft drinks may not be good for her health,” says Mathur, a Delhi-based professional. Mathur has now regulated the soft drink intake of Arushi and Arunabh, her son, 6. “I have become extra cautious regarding my children’s health,” she says.

Ever since the rumpus over the presence of pesticides in Coca-Cola and Pepsi broke out across the country earlier this month, caution is, in fact, the reigning mood in many urban Indian households today. And The Telegraph-Mode survey conducted among school children aged between eight and 13 in Calcutta and Delhi last week indicates that 48 per cent of children in Calcutta and 68 per cent in the capital have said goodbye to the fizz. In Calcutta, 48 per cent of children polled said that the colas were harmful for health; the figure for New Delhi: 85 per cent.

Those who still go about drinking soft drinks as usual either feel that there is nothing wrong in doing so or that they are not harmful. Some 64 per cent of drinkers in Delhi believe that the pesticide controversy is only a rumour.

Apart from parental regulation, the fact that many schools have decided to keep soft drinks out of their campuses has perhaps helped in cutting soft drink consumption among children. “I was never very keen on allowing our school canteen to stock aerated drinks for children,” says Anita Paul, vice- principal, Apeejay School, Saket, New Delhi. “I succeeded in weeding them out over time. And the cola controversy proved my hunch to be right. Right now, we have only nimbu pani, along with fruit juices, on offer for our students.”

School, for that matter, happens to be a prime institution where awareness about the possibly harmful effects of soft drinks is being spread. And academics say there seems to be a reverse peer pressure at work — older children often advise younger ones to stay away from soft drinks. “I asked a four-year-old student the other day if he would drink soft drinks,” says Madhu Chandra, principal, Lotus Valley School, Greater Noida on the outskirts of the capital. The child replied, “No. Dead insect.” “He was too young and inarticulate to differentiate between insects and pesticides, but he knew that drinks were hazardous nevertheless,” says Chandra.

Of course, not everybody seems to be listening. In Bangalore, Neha, 6, is hooked to the black drink and prefers it to the fruit juices that her mother serves her, saying that juices “don’t taste as good as cola”. And seven-year-old Abhinay Prakash’s take on the beverage is, “My McDonalds burger is incomplete without a cola and fries. It’s a part of the weekend outing to the mall.”

Abhinay’s mother, Shruti Prakash, thinks otherwise, but to no effect. “I have been trying to dissuade my son from drinking colas. But he wonders why I’m stopping him from drinking something which I never said no to earlier. Pesticide is just another big word for him — it doesn’t mean anything.”

It does mean a lot to doctors, who warn against the severe effects that pesticides may have on young children. “There is no doubt that pesticides, irrespective of where their sources lie, are an absolute no-no for children,” says Delhi-based consultant pediatrician Anupam Sachdeva. Sachdeva, who is currently doing a study for the government on the effects of pesticides on the human brain, says few studies done on pesticides take into account the cumulative effect the chemicals may have on human progeny. “Pesticides remain in the system to affect gametes and foetuses, and can be transmitted from one generation to the other, thus worsening its effect with passing time. Exposure to such toxins at a young age is thus highly dangerous,” he says.

Cola giants, however, address this issue from a different perspective. “There is no scientific evidence to prove that consumption of aerated drinks is indeed detrimental to health, provided one continues to have a healthy lifestyle,” says a Coca-Cola spokesperson. “Moreover, Coca-Cola is positioned as a refreshment drink targeted at young adults and adults, who exercise an informed choice in buying the product. Children do not form our target clientele in the first place,” he adds.

To drive home the point, Coca-Cola has in place a policy to not use any child below 12 years of age in any of the company’s marketing communication, including advertisements, says the spokesperson. A company spokesperson for Pepsi says much the same. “Soft drinks can be part of a balanced diet for everyone, and moderation and balance is the key to healthy enjoyment. And today, our beverage portfolio also includes juices and juice-based drinks that provide essential nutrition and vitamins, low-calorie drinks, and sports drinks that have rehydration benefits,” the spokesperson adds.

Finally, it’s up to the children — or their parents, for that matter — to take the ultimate call. As a spokesperson for the Centre for Science and Environment, which came out with its findings twice, says: “It’s ultimately the consumers’ choice. We have placed the facts on the table, and it’s for them to decide what’s best.”

68% of children in Delhi and 48% of those in Calcutta have stopped drinking Coke and Pepsi

85% of those in Delhi and 48% of those in Calcutta believe these two aerated drinks are harmful for health

69% of Delhi’s school children and 55% of those in Calcutta have shifted to fruit juice and other aerated drinks

64% of those in Delhi who haven’t stopped drinking Coke and Pepsi believe that the pesticide controversy is a rumour while

63% of those in Calcutta believe there is nothing wrong with these drinks.

The survey was conducted on a sample of 104 children in the age group of 8 to 13 in Delhi and Calcutta.