Abstract
David Studdert and colleagues explore how to balance public health, individual freedom, and good government when it comes to sugar-sweetened drinks.
Highlights
What forms of regulation have been tried? Which ones work? And which are most likely to hit the sweet spot between public health efficacy, political acceptability, and legal survivability? This paper addresses these questions, emphasizing legal and policy developments in the United States, where there has been substantial activity
While some research has suggested that raising sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) prices leads consumers to substitute foods that would result in a net increase in sodium and fat consumption [65], other studies have found that soft drink taxation does not trigger complete substitution to other sources of fat and is associated with reductions in both caloric intake and obesity [66,67]
The appropriate nature and reach of regulation to curtail SSB consumption remains highly contested. This is a timely reminder of how novel and unsettled public health law remains as a tool for combating noncommunicable disease
Summary
Over the last decade, many national, state, and local governments have introduced laws aimed at curbing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), especially by children. Several lessons can be drawn from the international experience with SSB regulation to date, which may inform future design and implementation of legal interventions to combat noncommunicable disease. Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs)—including sodas, sweetened teas, and sports, fruit, and energy drinks—have recently become a special target for regulation because of growing evidence regarding their contribution to weight gain and ill health, especially among children [9,10,11,12]. New York City’s portion cap is one of hundreds of laws introduced over the last decade by countries, states, and localities around the world to address the problem.
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