July 30, 2024 — The soft drinks industry levy came into effect in the UK in early 2018. The first study to investigate the effect of this “sugar tax” on individual-level consumption has just been published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. The headline finding is that adults reduced their daily added sugar intake by about two […]
November 4, 2023 — It only took half a century. Back in 1970, the FDA decided that brominated vegetable oil could no longer have GRAS – generally recognized as safe – status. This week the agency announced it plans to ban this additive to many citrus flavored drinks. The long goodbye to brominated vegetable oil (BVO) will not be […]
September 20, 2019 — It’s official. Juice is out – at least for kids under five. According to just about every relevant professional organization, kids don’t need anything but milk and water to drink. And for that matter, they should be skipping the chocolate milk and other sweetened milks. Juice and sweet drinks will rot their teeth and just […]
May 16, 2019 — Yep. We’re just about done here. Soda taxes are highly effective, and Philly has proved it. Classic economic price-demand curves work, especially in a city with a lot of poverty. If you tax soda and raise the price, sales go down. Philly obesity and diabetes rates will follow. A hot new publication in JAMA proves […]
January 9, 2019 — Forgive us for saying so. But this seems a bit like opposite day. On one hand, taxing sugar sweetened beverages is popular in progressive enclaves like Berkeley, California. On the other, the conservative Wall Street Journal is warning that such taxes are highly regressive. They’re hurting vulnerable, low-income neighborhoods in Philadelphia, says the Journal. Are […]
May 15, 2017 — Is fear a useful tool for promoting public health? Skimming the headlines you might think so. Hopes and fears for our health often take a ride on the beverages we drink and demonize. Fear the Bubbles In the UK, the press seems delighted to hype a rat study of carbonated water, saying that it will […]
