Portal de Cieza

www.portaldecieza.com

• Home
• Business
• Hotels
• Restaurants
• News
• Advertisement

The Councilor for Consumption, Health and Public Health of the City of Cieza highlights that the measure "is endorsed by the WHO as a very profitable policy because it allows increasing the health of the population while reducing the health cost of diseases related to consumption excessive sugar ".According to a statement, "the government has announced that it will raise the VAT on sugary drinks from the current 10% to 21%, which has unleashed a wave of support but also criticism.

On the one hand, there are those who consider that this measure it will contribute to improving the health of the population and, on the other hand, those who believe that this measure is purely tax collection and that it affects negatively, above all, people who have less income.

"Thus, the Councilor for Consumption, Health and Public Health of the City Council of Cieza, Francisco Saorín, recalled how "harmful" added sugar in general and sugary drinks in particular is for health; "a consumption that the WHO associates with overweight and obesity, which is especially worrying in the case of children.

In turn, this overweight and obesity are risk factors for suffering non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, which is the first cause of death in the world and in our country, diabetes, disorders in the locomotor system and some cancers "."According to Health data, in Spain one out of every two adults between the ages of 25 and 65 has a higher weight than recommended, which means that, compared to Europe, Spain is in an intermediate position in relation to the percentage of obese adults.

But with regard to the child population, our country presents very high percentages compared to Europe, the highest figures only comparable with some Mediterranean countries ", the councilor specified."On the other hand, according to the OECD, obesity absorbs one in 10 euros destined for the Spanish health budget.

Therefore, all this represents a serious health problem, but also an economic one, because treating this type of diseases derived from overweight and obesity it absorbs a lot of public resources ", stressed Saorín.The mayor explained that, "taking into account that the consumption of sugary drinks is associated with a greater probability of suffering this type of disease, constituting a very important problem in Spain, the Ministry of Consumption has initiated an aggressive awareness campaign so that people know how harmful added sugar is and decide to reduce their consumption accordingly.

"Saorín has stressed that "although from Consumer Affairs a labeling of products is being promoted so that consumers are unhealthy or not that type of products, the information is not usually enough to modify consumption habits, that is why it will also be increase the VAT on sugary drinks which is currently at 10%, which does not make any sense because most products are taxed at 21% "."It is not a novel idea, since there are 27 countries in the world that have introduced a tax on sugary drinks and the results of these experiences confirm that the consumption of sugary drinks has decreased considerably, which has improved the health of the population increasing their life expectancy, especially in families with lower income, and that has reduced the cost of health care ", declared the mayor.Saorín has wanted to make it clear that this measure "does not have a collection claim for two main reasons: because by making an aggressive campaign against the consumption of beverages and other sugary products, it is foreseeable that total consumption will decrease, with which if this also occurs collection will decrease, and because there is no need to collect more because Brussels has allowed any country, including ours, to have all the public deficit it needs at a time of pandemic until 2022 "."In summary, this measure of increasing VAT on sugary drinks is endorsed by the WHO as a very profitable policy because it allows increasing the health of the population while reducing the health cost of diseases related to excessive sugar consumption", it is finished.

Source: Ayuntamiento de Cieza