Sugary drinks have been all over the news lately. At a two-day symposium
recently held to discuss their impact, we saw calls for sugar-sweetened drinks
to be taxed and even banned altogether.
Where these were once dismissed as fringe demands from the fun
police, and all anyone in government had to do was whisper the phrase ‘nanny
state’ to shut down any debate, the pressure is mounting for a serious
conversation to be had.
The FIZZ group is made up of researchers and public health doctors
who’ve banded together because they believe sugar-sweetened drinks are a major
contributor to poor health in New Zealand. They’re advocating for the phasing
out of sugary drinks from New Zealand, pointing out many studies linking the
intake of sugary drinks with obesity, type 2 diabetes, rotten teeth, gout and
other risk factors for cardiovascular disease and premature death. They say “the
tide of evidence which implicates sugary drinks with these common diseases is
so strong now that ending the sales of these products is justified”. They liken
sugary drinks to tobacco, and say similar strategies should be used to phase
them out, including raising prices through taxes, restricting advertising and
sales, and having ‘sugary drink free’ workplaces and public institutions.
Whether or not you believe that sugary drinks are addictive in the
way that tobacco is – and the evidence does not seem to be quite there yet – it
is hard to argue that anyone needs sugary drinks in their life. I find it very
hard to see the harm in taxing something that really does no good at all in our
food supply, and probably does harm. Yes, life is about personal
responsibility, and we all have to take ownership of our own health. But
sometimes we also have to think of the greater good. For people who don’t have
the awareness, education or knowledge about healthy eating, couldn’t regulation
be a nudge in a better direction? Right now there is a group of people out
there who are drinking enough sugary drinks to do them a lot of harm.
If you are someone who can’t do without a sweet drink in your day,
now could be the time to try and wean yourself off the liquid sugar. You might
start by switching to a sugar-free variety of your favourite drink. Whatever
you think about alternative sweeteners, most experts agree these are a better
option, even as an interim step. There are more and more drinks now available
sweetened with the ‘natural’ sweetener, stevia, and these are also worth a try.
They won’t, however, take away the craving for a sweet taste. Only gradually
reducing the sugar in your life will do that. It takes time, but it is do-able.
Just as with salty tastes, our taste buds gradually adapt to less sweet tastes
when we cut down. If you can get to a place where you choose a nutrient-dense
piece of naturally sweet fruit instead of an energy-dense, nutrient poor sugary
drink, you’ll definitely be on the right track.
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