Expert raises alarm over health implications of Sugar Sweetened Beverage
By Linus Aleke
Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, University College London, Ibrahim Abubakar, has raised alarm over the dangerous health implications of Sugar Sweetened Beverage in Nigeria.
He noted that seven (7), out of every ten (10), persons in middle and low income countries will die of non communicable disease if not checked.
Prof. Abubakar who said this in a Zoom meeting with civil society organizations and select media organizations revealed that available data link consumption of Sugar Sweetened Beverage to the rise in non communicable disease amongst the population.
He also noted that recent survey shows that majority of people that died of COVID-19 had underlying ailment that is linked to high consumption of sugar, such as obesity and diabetes.
He however, applauded Federal Government decision and effort to tax sugar sweetened beverage in Nigeria to help reduce the intake of these sugar products, as well as raise funds to strengthen the health systems in the country.
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The Public Health expert said that government spending in the health sector in Nigeria is less when compared to the global average, adding that Nigeria needs to increase its health budget.
He said that government needs to put mechanism in place to ensure that the taxes from sweetened beverage is plowed back into health sector.
This he said will help improve the health sector in the country as well as reduce health tourism.
He also called for an international legal instrument that will prevent Western countries from poaching health professionals from middle and low income countries.
Prof. Abubakar noted that the call for tax on sugar sweetened beverage is not aimed at stifling the industry which will in turn increase unemployment, but only strategy to minimize the intake of the sweetened beverage to encourage healthy and productive population.
2019 UNDP data reveals that “Each year 15 million people between the ages of 30 and 69 die from cancers, diabetes, heart disease and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Over 85 percent of these premature deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.”
A noncommunicable disease according to an online resource, “is a noninfectious health condition that cannot be spread from person to person. It also lasts for a long period of time. This is also known as a chronic disease. A combination of genetic, physiological, lifestyle, and environmental factors can cause these diseases”.
The theme of the Zoom Meeting is, “Importance of Sugar Sweetened Beverage Taxes to Public Health”.
