A sugar tax can answer Australia’s obesity problem

Abstract

This article aims to review literature examining the impact of a sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) tax in order to make recommendations to the Australian Government about the efficacy of a sugar tax in Australia. Due to Australia’s ageing population and the changed lifestyle of the population in the twenty-first century, chronic diseases have become the largest cause of death in Australia. A significant common risk factor in the four major chronic diseases is obesity. Obesity is caused by a number of factors, some of which are preventable, including nutrition. Thus, strategies that aim to prevent obesity have become a significant area of chronic disease prevention. One such strategy is the introduction of a sugar tax. This article argues that SSB taxes have a positive impact on lowering obesity. A 20 per cent tax on SSBs is the recommendation to the Australian Government, with revenue being used to fund other obesity prevention strategies. Although the government has previously quashed a proposed sugar tax due to belief that the tax would have little positive impact on Australian population, this article indicates that the tax would provide an inexpensive and effective method of addressing obesity prevalence.