Sugar drinks cause overweight, obesity

Assoc.Prof. Truong Tuyet Mai, Deputy Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, said that regular consumption of sugary drinks, including sugary beverage, is identified as one of the causes of overweight, obesity and metabolic disorders both in adults and children.

Specifically, the increase in the consumption of sugar drinks leads to excess energy causing overweight, obesity but lack of nutrients needed for the body, because the energy from this drink is hollow energy.

Studies show that adults drinking a can of soft drinks per day for a year can increase up to 6.75 kg of weight, if the energy intake level from other food sources. As for children, if consuming sugary beverages, there is a constant risk of obese 2.57 times more than those who do not drink.

In Vietnam, overweight and obesity is increasing rapidly. For children, this rate has doubled over the past 10 years, from 8.5% in 2010 to 19% in 2020 and becoming a serious health problem. As for adults, this rate has increased by 30% in 6 years, from 15% in 2015 to 19% in 2020.

In addition to obesity, sweet drinks also increase the incidence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension as well as complications of cardiovascular disease, stroke, death and diseases related to the digestive tract, dental disease, …

The consumption of sugary drinks has increased rapidly in recent years. According to the data of the Euromonitor 2023, the total beverage consumption has increased more than 4 times from 1.59 billion liters in 2009 to 6.67 billion liters in 2023. Consumption per capita also increased rapidly, increasing 3.5 times from 18 liters/person in 2009, to 66 liters/person in 2023.

The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that imposing special consumption taxes for sugary drinks, including sugar -level beverage is an important measure to reduce consumption and harmful effects of these products on public health. A lot of practical evidence in the world shows that imposing taxes to reduce sugar consumption helps reduce overweight and obesity. In Mexico, tax policy is estimated to help prevent 239,900 cases of obesity (39% of them are in children) after 2 years of implementation.

Research in Thailand also shows that taxes will reduce overweight and obesity rates at 1.7%, 3.8% and 4.9% in three years, corresponding to the implementation of the tax rates of 11%, 20% and 25%. In Vietnam, research by the University of Public Health in 2022 also showed that if the special consumption tax is 20% on the retail price for sugary drinks, the rate of overweight and obesity can decrease by 2.1% and 1.5%, respectively.

The Ministry of Finance is drafting a special consumption tax with sugary drinks. WHO recommends increasing tax rates to 40% of factory price to 2030, helping retail prices increase by 20%, thereby reducing payment and consumption.

March 4 every year is chosen as the World Day to prevent obesity, thereby warning people to be obese is serious and complicated. This year, with the theme of system changing, healthier life, in order to raise awareness and support practical solutions, focusing on the system that needs to change in resolving global obesity crisis.