Sugar Tax Case Study

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Obesity rates are significantly increasing in Canada and are a major concern when considering the health of Canadians. Throughout the Society, Individual, and Medicine (SIM) lectures, we learned that a quarter of the Canadian adult population is obese (Imbeault, 2016). Dr. Imbeault (2016) emphasized that when obesity rates from 1981 and 2009 were compared, obesity doubled in most age groups regardless of gender, even in young children. These were shocking numbers and made me realize how important it is for physicians to advocate for healthy nutrition and physical activity. This final statistic that Dr. Imbeault mentioned made me realize that change is not an option anymore, but a requirement to maintain quality of life for future generations. He (2016) said 63% of obese children continued …show more content…

Through comprehension of the significant relationship between SSBs and obesity, the existence of an unhealthy food environment and the indirect association of SSBs with chronic and severe diseases, it is clear that a sugar tax would aide in not only decreasing obesity rates but also improving health. Many argue that sugar taxes will not decrease obesity because there are multiple causes of obesity. However, as physicians, in our many roles, we can help to build a multi-sectoral approach to help decrease rates and I believe sugar taxes would be a good stepping stone. As a future physician, I play an important role in my patients’ health, and need to make sure that in addition to the implementation of the sugar tax, I involve a multidisciplinary team, educate my patients, and also encourage physical activity. Overall, the sugar tax and its multiple benefits should be strongly considered by the Canadian government to help decrease obesity rates and improve the health of

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