People are consuming more and more sugar-based drinks. Why? What can be done to reduce sugary drink consumption?

It is true that the consumption of

drinks

with added sugar is increasing globally, even in less developed countries. While a number of factors explain

this

trend, some countries have taken measures to reduce the intake of sweetened

drinks

. Heavy marketing is the principal reason why the consumption of sugar-based

drinks

has increased rapidly.

This

trend is of concern to the World

Health

Organisation because it carries

health

risks, including life-threatening conditions

such

as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain types of cancer. The soft-

drinks

manufacturers advertise their products to a target audience of young children and adolescents.

This

strategy encourages youngsters to form the lifetime habit of buying these

drinks

, as they are soon addicted to the high sugar content. They put on weight, are prone to obesity and find it difficult to keep their teeth healthy. There are three measures that would be effective in tackling the rise in the popularity of sugary

drinks

.

Firstly

, governments should raise taxes on the sales of soft

drinks

.

This

has been done in France,

for example

, and could be implemented by other countries, too.

Secondly

, vending machines must be removed from public places, discouraging the consumption of sugary

drinks

in schools, bus stations, cinemas and hospitals.

Finally

,

health

awareness campaigns on TV and the internet could help in combatting the promotion of soft

drinks

by marketing agencies, including the compulsory addition of

health

warnings on labels, as in the case of tobacco products. In conclusion,

although

the promotion of soft

drinks

has resulted in increased sales, effective steps can be taken to reverse

this

trend.