Brisket has addressed much of this with an earlier post, but people have to be taught HOW and WHERE to go seek out data. And these days, it's harder than ever with misinformation being thrown in your face be social networks of choice. "This is basically ozempic in powder" is an add I saw on FB awhile back, it's for a fucking fiber product. You spoke earlier of how you (and wealthy) people had a better background to pass on healthy and smart habits to children. And yet you also talked about the circumstances in your own life that led to prolonged years of an unhealthy lifestyle, even though you should have seemingly been taught better by your privileged parents/lifestyle. Because guess what, circumstances matter. And if they matter to you, they certainly matter to poor people.
Sure there's a world of information out there, and it's one most people are woefully incapable of effectively navigating. Sure, technically my mom can use the internet and her phone, but good luck telling her to Google how to reprogram her remote control. To some people, changing habits blind is not only hard, it's impossible.
Yes, sugary drinks are the fucking devil, and yes, they could live healthier lifestyles if they just knew better, and had someone to teach them those things. But lets not ignore that a) the programs educating and offering healthier options for poor people have been getting slashed and burned since the 80's, so there's no inherent knowledge to pass down, and no resources to turn to with authority and b) all the sugar that they've likely been ingesting since they were kids has them fucking addicted to the shit. You're asking lifetime smokers to give up cigarettes, except people acknowledge that quitting smoking is hard. Quitting sugar for lifetime addicts is fucking hard.
Is it possible that poor people consume more sugary drinks because they have few pleasures in life other than their food, and they don't know how damaging sugar is until they're already addicts?