A Tax That Saves Lives?
Researchers at University of California, San Francisco have released new estimates that a tax of a penny per ounce of soda could save 26,000 lives over the next ten years. In addition, they predict that such a tax would prevent 100,000 cases of heart disease and 8,000 strokes in that time. Perhaps the most dramatic number – they suggest the tax would prevent 240,000 cases of diabetes in the next year. That’s pretty significant when you consider that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ranks Diabetes as the 7th leading cause of death in the United States.
NPR‘s blog The Salt has some really nice coverage of the new estimates, including a closer look at how these kinds of estimates are made given that people’s behavior can be difficult to predict.
Also in the news this week: Mindful eating helps prevent weight gain. Not too surprising, but it’s a nice reminder to savor the food we eat. And an anti-childhood obesity ad campaign in Atlanta has been getting criticism for being too critical. And the new frontier in medicine – getting patients to plug in to their own care.
