As Soda Fattens, Experts Urge Tax

Research published this week has added to a growing body of evidence confirming what common sense has suggested for some time—drinking soda can cause obesity.

One of the studies, published in the Journal of Pediatrics, said that increased soda consumption in adolescent girls can predict increases in weight. This study, and another in the Journal of American Clinical Nutrition, add to the growing literature of the ill effects of soda.

“Over the long term, the excess calories [from soda] lead to weight gain and there is evidence that over the last decade caloric intake from sugar-sweetened beverages have gone up,” said Eric B. Rimm, associate professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. “I think that you can’t draw a direct link between the increased rates of obesity in this country and sugar-sweetened beverages, but there is an association.”

The new research has led some public health experts to renew calls for a “fat-tax” that would help limit soda intake, much in the way tobacco taxes limit cigarette consumption.

“If you look at the cigarette literature, there’s a lot of info that applies—if prices go up, buying goes down, especially among younger consumers,” said Alison Field, assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School (HMS).

Other experts would also like to see the government reduce farm subsidies that help make sodas cheaper. “Subsidies for corn make high-fructose corn syrup, an already cheap product and the main ingredient in soda, even cheaper,” says David S. Ludwig, associate professor of pediatrics at HMS.

Students who listed soda as an interest in their facebook profiles said that they would be disappointed if the price of soda rose.

“I would be significantly poorer,” said Christina L. Adams ’06. “It’s quite possible my tution money would double.”

However, Brennan R. Bilberry ’08 was less concerned.

“I am happily fit and not obese and no tax is going to limit my consumption of Cherry Coke,” he said.

Fortunately, students don’t need to start saving for soda just yet. Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) plans to continue offering soda to students in the near future.

“We offer a variety of choices for you guys, and soda is one of them. It’s a matter of choice on the consumer side. We’re not the food police,” said HUDS spokesperson Jami M. Snyder.