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Health turning point? Americans finally eating less

After decades of worsening diets and sharp increases in obesity, Americans have cut back on sugary soft drinks and are consuming fewer calories, although more than a third of U.S. adults are still considered obese.

After decades of worsening diets and sharp increases in obesity, Americans’ eating habits have begun changing for the better.

Calories consumed daily by the typical U.S. adult, which peaked around 2003, are in the midst of their first sustained decline since federal statistics began to track the subject, more than 40 years ago. The number of calories that the average U.S. child takes in daily has fallen even more — by at least 9 percent.