U.K. Could Introduce The "Fat Tax"S To Reduce Obesity
In order to tackle the growing obesity problem in the U.K. the prime minister, David Cameron, has said that they are going to try and introduce what is called the "fat tax". This is a surcharge on foods that contain more than 2.3% of saturated fats. Foods being taxed would include many processed items such as pizzas, butter, as well as milk and other dairy products. Of course this "fat tax" has come under the scrutiny of retailers that are complaining about excessive bureaucracy, however David Cameron claims that this tax is needed in order to prevent the outrageous costs of health care from soaring as well preventing life expectancy from plummeting. Everyone agrees obesity must be addressed because it is one of Britain's biggest health challenges, other than smoking and excessive drinking.
Many people criticize the "fat tax" because it is said that this will not change the eating behaviors of people. When taxes were implemented for cigarettes and alcohol, addictive behaviors had failed to change. Just like cigarettes and alcohol, over eating is just as addicting because it provides a cessation to depression. One study done in the U.K. says that sugar is what kills more than 200 people per day, not fatty foods. Sugar is a carb that is absorbed into the body and stored as fat, while fat from foods simply passes through the gut slowly and usually is not even digested. One doctor, Dr. Robert Lefever, says that fatty foods that have a high content of saturated fat is not what is killing people. He also says these foods are healthy and one needs to have them in order to survive and live a healthy lifestyle. He also says that they in no way cause obesity.
Another problem with the "fat tax" is with people on a limited or low income. Typically fast or processed foods are considerably cheaper than healthier whole foods. Poor people can feed their families a pizza for half the cost of a couple of vegetables and side of meat. Many people believe that if the cost of healthy foods were not so expensive, less than fortunate people would certainly opt into these foods choices over the cheaper unhealthy foods. It is unfortunate when fruits and vegetables are considered a luxury making for lower income citizens forced to eat rubbish that they do not enjoy or crave. A lot of low income families are simply eating unhealthy foods for survival purposes, not because they do not want to eat healthy nutritious meals.
