Nutrition
- March 22, 2010
Should We Put a Sin Tax on Soda?
Watching the television coverage of the health care reform debates and House votes made me think about the possibility of taxing sweetened beverages in order to reduce consumption. Some experts believe the correlation between increased consumption of soda and the rising obesity rates in the US and other countries is important enough that we should consider forcing a reduction of soda consumption by taxing it. Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill suggest that increasing the cost of junk foods and soda could reduce obesity. But is taxing soda or junk food the way to go? What about subsidies? Why not subsidize the production of fruits and vegetables instead of paying farmers more to grow crops such as corn, which is used to make cheap high fructose corn syrup? Tell me what you think. Should we tax sodas and junk food to reduce consumption? Are there better ways to educate people about what happens when you drink too much sugary, calorie-laden beverages and junk foods? Daily Nutrition TipShould We Put a Sin Tax on Soda? originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Monday, March 22nd, 2010 at 08:28:19.Permalink | Comment | Email this
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