Tax on Sugary Drinks Could Help Curb Global Obesity

Oct 13, 2016, 00:45
Tax on Sugary Drinks Could Help Curb Global Obesity

The World Health Organization urges taxing sugary drinks to fight obesity. In a report issued on World Obesity Day, it said a tax at that level could reduce consumption of sweet drinks by the same amount.

Fiscal policies that lead to at least a 20-percent increase in the retail price of sugary drinks would result in proportional reductions in consumption of such products, according to a new report released by the WHO.

The WHO believes that lowering consumption of sodas, sports drinks, juices, etc., is an effective way to minimize obesity and diabetes cases.

People who are obese have an increased risk of heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S. They also are more likely to develop certain types of cancer, including breast cancer, colorectal cancer, renal cell cancer, esophageal adenocarcinoma, endometrial cancer, gallbladder cancer and thyroid cancer.

"Nutritionally, people don't need any sugar in their diet", Dr. Francesco Branca, director of the WHO's Department of Nutrition for Health and Development, said in the statement.

WHO said increasing taxes on sugary drinks could help lower consumption of sugars, bringing health benefits and more income for governments such as to pay for health services.

It also said that the same tax measures levied against sugary drinks appear to work with other sugary foods, as well as those high in saturated fats, trans fats, and salt.

Connected matters identified by the report correlate this measure with reducing the prices for fruit and vegetables by 10 to 30 percent in order to stimulate consumption.

"Overweight and obesity will impact on nearly every organ in the body, and can lead to an increased Body Mass Index, will increase the prevalence of certain types of cancer, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hypertension and heart problems, just to name but a few", she said.

The report adds that fiscal policies should target foods and beverages for which healthier alternatives are available. The agency recommends that people keep their intake of sugar to less than 10 per cent of their energy needs. Although higher prices are never popular, the WHO argues they can be made more palatable if the revenues from the tax are earmarked for public health and exercise programs.

World Health Organization guidelines say people needed to roughly halve the amount of sugar they consume to lower risks of obesity and tooth decay. Among poor people, the number of consumers decreased by 17 percent.

In 2012, 38 million people lost their lives due to NCDs, 16 million or 42% of whom died prematurely - before 70 years - from largely avoidable conditions.

Laura Schmidt, a professor of health policy at the School of Medicine at the University of California at San Francisco, agreed with the study saying that sugar is "more dangerous" than it is usually thought since it does not only give "empty calories" but also can make a person "sick".

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