CNN
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Raising the prices of sugary sodas, coffee, tea, energy drinks, sports drinks, and fruit drinks by an average of 31% would reduce consumers of these beverages, according to a new analysis of regulations implemented in five U.S. cities. Purchases fell by a third.
“What we measured is how consumers change their consumption in response to changes in price,” said study author Scott, an assistant professor of economics at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Kaplan says.
“We found that for every 1% increase in price, purchases of these products decreased by 1%,” Kaplan said. “The decline in consumer purchases occurred immediately after the tax was introduced and remained so for the next three years of the study.”
William Dermody, vice president of media and public affairs for the American Beverage Association, which represents the sugar-sweetened and diet beverage industries, told CNN in an email that such taxes are “counterproductive” and do not benefit consumers, small businesses, or consumers. , said it would harm employees.
“The beverage industry’s strategy to reduce sugar, reduce portion sizes, clarify calorie information, and offer consumers more choice is working. Currently, nearly 60% of all beverages sold % of sugar-free beverages, and the calories people consume from beverages have fallen to the lowest levels in the world ‘for decades.’ Darmody said.
Many sugary drinks are high in calories and have little or no nutritional value. chronic diseaseinclude heart disease, cancer, Diabetes mellitus, Studies have found that it can lead to obesity and stroke.flat 1 serving A 2020 study found that drinking sugary soft drinks every day increases your risk of cardiovascular disease.
Zero-calorie or low-calorie diet drinks are also associated with symptoms such as: chronic diseasewhile both sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened beverages Increased risk of early death For several reasons.
The new study did not examine the health effects of reducing sugar-sweetened beverage sales, but an earlier study by researchers at Tufts University did, Kaplan said.
The study, Published in 2019“If sugar-sweetened beverage consumption were expanded nationally, a 15% to 20% reduction would reduce health care costs by $270 per person over the average lifespan of Americans, or $45 billion in total,” Kaplan said. He said that it was found that
Tufts University researcher Park Wilde, lead author of the 2019 study, said a 33% reduction in consumer purchases would likely have a similar impact on health care costs.
“Given the large effects estimated in this study on beverage purchases, these beverage taxes may have reduced obesity, heart disease, and mortality in the five cities,” said Wilde, a professor at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. “It’s expensive.” In Boston.
“The main contribution of this new study is that it provides an improved estimate of the price effect. If this study had existed when we conducted our study, I would have cited it.” Wilde said in an email. “This seems like the best estimate of the price effect I’ve seen so far.”
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flat 1 serving A 2020 study found that drinking sugary soft drinks every day increases your risk of cardiovascular disease.
Kaplan said nine U.S. jurisdictions and more than 50 countries have some form of consumer tax on sugar-sweetened beverages, typically levying the tax on sellers who then pass the cost on to consumers. The method of transfer is being taken.
Kaplan said some U.S. cities impose a sales tax on sugary drinks at checkout, typically at a rate of 1% to 2%. Other cities tax these drinks by the ounce, further increasing the overall price of the product.
“You’ll probably spend $1 on a 12-ounce can of soda,” he said. “A tax of 2 cents per ounce would add 24 cents to the dollar.”
However, consumption tax does not have the same degree of impact on consumers’ household finances. for example,
In Washington, DC, sugar-sweetened beverages are subject to an 8% sales tax, which is 2% above the standard 6% sales tax. The same can of soda costs 2 cents more per ounce instead of paying an additional 24 cents in tax.
“So we think a per-ounce tax is a much larger, and actually more impactful type of tax,” Kaplan said.
analysis, Published on Friday JAMA Health Forum looked at per-ounce tax plans by ZIP code in Boulder, Colorado. Oakland, California. Philadelphia; Seattle; and San Francisco.
“We looked only at sugar-sweetened beverages sold in retail and convenience stores. Mass retailers, supermarkets, convenience stores, and drug stores were sampled,” Kaplan said.
He said the study did not include the impact on sugar-sweetened beverage sales at restaurants or sales taxes on artificially sweetened beverages. But one city in the study, Philadelphia, has taxed diet drinks with great success, Kaplan said. Other studies have found Philadelphia has a higher success rate in reducing consumption than many other cities because the tax is “broader in scope, including both regular and artificially sweetened beverages.” He added that.
Despite the effects of sugar taxes found in this study and others, other cities may have difficulty enacting such public health programs in the future, Kaplan said.
“The last tax we looked at was introduced in January 2018. And you might be wondering, ‘So why wasn’t it introduced anymore?’ Why? States such as California and Washington We passed a bill that basically pre-empts cities from doing that,” Kaplan said.
“If states are going to get ahead of implementing these taxes at the city level, they might look at ways to implement these taxes at a broader geographic level, maybe even at the federal level. ”