The Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA) has been raising awareness about the impact of the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages due to the direct evidence linking its regular consumption with type 2 diabetes, overweight and obesity and other health problems. A growing collection of studies led the CDA to call on governments to introduce a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. Type 2 diabetes is a national health crisis—a new case is diagnosed every three minutes.
Recent news from the University of California highlights how that institution is leading its own fight against sugary drinks by removing them from campus. In addition, closer to home, the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia has taken a similar approach to removing sugary drinks and added hydration stations filled with water. And one pharmacy business owner took matters into his own hands by banning the sale of sugary drinks. The Government of North West Territories removed soda from the legislature and recognizes schools that run ‘Drop the Pop’ campaigns to encourage students to drink healthy beverages, especially water.
It is our hope that continued awareness and important moves such as these will encourage other institutions and groups to take similar action to foster healthy environments to help consumers make the healthy choice the easy choice.