Cut down on sugar

Multiple levers are available to improve public health

The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued draft guidelines to countries on how they can construct fiscal policies to promote healthy diets. An important part of these guidelines, which are currently under public consultation, is that the tax system can be used to provide disincentives for sugar-sweetened beverages, or SSBs. The WHO has sought in particular to promote the experience of countries that have successfully put extra taxes on SSBs — countries that include the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Mexico. The reasons for this concern are well founded. The fact is that excessive sugar intake, including through disguised methods