Delay does in fact mean death

by Dr Petronell Kruger

Two weeks ago, a major global study reaffirmed what the medical community has been stating for quite some time: sugary drinks lead to a whole host of diseases that are, in fact, deadly.

This study found that in South Africa, 1 in 4 cases of diabetes are caused by sugary drinks. For context, as a South African, diabetes is the second leading cause of death. Diabetes rates are also skyrocketing.

South Africa is not alone in this quandary. Faced with high levels of sugary-drink-related deaths, disability, which impacts productivity, and the high cost of treating diseases like diabetes (and other diseases with a causal relationship with sugar consumption such as cancer and heart disease), the international health community has turned to taxing sugary drinks.

Much like alcohol and tobacco, the rationale is two-fold: one, the tax will dissuade people from drinking it, reducing their sugar intake and thereby the number of people with those diseases. Two, it will help fund the extra healthcare cost burden.

In South Africa, our version of this policy is called the Health Promotion Levy. There are several studies that have found the tax has reduced consumption in the few short years it has been introduced.

Has a single tax, in a David-versus-Goliath-esque feat, single handedly stopped the rise of diabetes, cancer and heart disease? Obviously not. Has it assisted in reducing the uptake of these diseases? By all proven metrics and accounts – yes. Repeatedly proven. In independent journals by local and international researchers from various fields. And even by concessions from soda companies and the sugar industry complaining that their product is in lesser demand.

The Healthy Living Alliance recently ran a campaign to rally public support for this public health intervention. Our campaign, “Delay Means Death”, brings the realities of our sugary drink crisis into focus by putting the stories of the people living with diabetes at the forefront. We understand that the campaign has caused some discomfort with players who profit from no taxation. We ask those players to consider the discomfort of 5.8 million diabetic South Africans.

Dr Petronell Kruger is the Programmes Manager at the Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA)