IN THIS ISSUE

This month, Better Health News talks about the good tasting stuff that's not good for you: sugar.

First, did you know that all the money the US government spends on sugar industry subsidies each year could by an entire NFL football team? And at the same time, the US government funds health problems research for diabetes and obesity-related conditions.

Then, we talk about one approach to fighting the diabetes and obesity epidemic. Simply put, tax sugary drinks.

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Junk food is just that: junk. Research has time-and-again shown how chips, sweets, and soda, are a destructive addition to any American diet.

So, why is the U.S. government giving billions of dollars every year to the junk food industry?

And why is money being funneled into healthcare to combat ‘junk food diseases’ like diabetes and obesity?

Congress, along with the Department of Agriculture, spends more than $1.2 billion every year subsidizing junk food crops, according to a recent report from PIRG (the U.S. Public Interest Research Group).

Since 1995, the U.S. government has given the corn industry more than $81 billion dollars. Much of that corn is made into high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and vegetable shortening. These are key ingredients in pop, chips, and other sweet-and-fatty edibles.

But, the government is also supporting fruit and veggie growers, right?

Not so much.

The Numbers

For example, the subsidy programs only distributed $637 million to apple and vegetable growers:

• Apple and vegetable growers combined: $637 million
• Just corn and soy: $1.2 billion

Yet every year, private U.S. citizens to the U.S. government collectively spends an estimated $190 billion on obesity-related issues.

That’s about 20% of the entire healthcare spend.

Obese people are more prone to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and bone/joint issues. Being overweight also increases the risk of getting some types of cancers, including the breast, colon, kidney, and pancreas cancer varieties.

What That Money Could Buy

So what could we buy with the $1.2 billion the U.S. government spends every year to help out junk food?

• Ten F-22 Raptor fighter jets
  These military planes go for about $120 million each.
• Half of a military submarine
  The USS Virginia, an attack submarine with a nuclear reactor powering it, costs about $2.4 billion. And due to better ship-building these days, that price is coming down.
• An entire NFL team
  The average NFL team costs about $1.04 billion dollars to own.
• A social network like Facebook
  Microsoft spent approximately this much money to buy Yammer.
• Two Hawaiian Islands
  Oracle founder Larry Ellison recently bought one Hawaiian island for $500 million.
• Four blockbuster movies
  The Dark Knight Rises cost $250 million to make.

It’s fun to think about producing movies and buying pro sports teams. But, let’s take a look at how this money could really help the health and well-being of our families.

We could...

• Invent one or two new medications
  The development of a single drug is estimated to cost between $500 million and $800 million.
• Buy a year of obesity reduction research
  The National Institutes of Health’s yearly obesity reduction research costs are about the same as what America spends on junk food crop subsidies.

Surprised by how much our government spends on businesses that increase healthcare costs? Share this with a friend or family member. Let them know why chips and pop are so cheap these days in America.

When you read ‘taxes’ what do you think about?

Income tax? Sales tax?

These kinds of taxes aren’t likely to make you a healthier person. But, medical professionals have been fighting with beverage companies like the Coca Cola Corporation and Pepsico over a ‘sugary drink tax.’

On the table is a penny-an-ounce tax to sugary drinks. Experts say that this tax would reduce sugary drink consumption by an estimated 15% over the course of a decade.

How much would the tax generate? About half of Americans over age 2 consume a sugary drink on any given day. So, a sugary drink tax would add up to a pretty penny.

The American Medical Association (AMA) wants that money to go to programs that prevent and treat obesity and other obesity-related health problems. What’s more, the group suggests investing the money where it will do the most good: in communities and schools seeing the brunt of the obesity epidemic.

A Tax That Could Save 26,000 Lives

Not only would a sugary drink tax raise money to make people healthier, it could also save the U.S. up to $17 billion. Over the next 10 years, a 15% drop in sugary drink consumption would add up to this much in healthcare savings.

But on top of saving healthcare dollars, experts estimate that American obesity would drop by 5%.

Five percent might not sound like much, but that 5% translates to:

• 95,000 coronary heart events prevented.
• 8,000 strokes stopped.
• 26,000 premature deaths avoided.

That’s no small difference.

Getting Healthier, Tax-free

The best way to avoid paying more for your sugary drinks is to just avoid drinking them. So, if you’re looking for an easy (and free!) way to look and feel better, here are two take-home tips:

Tip One: Keep track of your sugar intake.

Even the most health conscious person can forget to factor sugary drinks into calorie counts. Just one 12-ounce sugared beverage has up to 150 calories.

Start keeping tabs on how much you’re drinking by recording how many sugary drinks you have in a day. Get the calorie count per-drink, then plug the numbers into your calculator: sugary drinks times calories.

You’ll be surprised how many extra calories you’re taking in.

Tip Two: Gradually reduce the amount of sugar you drink.

If you’re like me, you have a drink of choice. I like iced tea, but for you it might be soda or even coffee with sugar in it.

So, instead of cutting out sugary drinks ‘cold turkey,’ cut back a 3-drink-a-day habit to just 2 each day. After a few weeks, cut back to drinking just one a day. You might find it easier than you think to ease these health-busters out of your lifestyle.

Cutting back on the amount of sugar we consume is not only good for our health—it’s good for our finances, too. Take action to reign in the sugar monster and you’ll avoid paying drink-related taxes or price hikes. But more than that, you could also avoid the life-changing health risks too much sugar brings.

Know someone with a sweet tooth for soda or coffee or tea? Pass this article along.