Johannesburg - A new study on a suggested tax on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has added weight to the effect such taxes may have on the country’s high obesity levels.
A team of researchers from the University of Witwatersrand have authored a paper entitled “The potential impact of a 20 percent tax on sugar-sweetened beverages on obesity in South African adults: A mathematical model”.
The paper was published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on Tuesday. It found that the prevalence of obesity and the consumption of SSBs in South Africa had risen sharply.
“Research shows that consumption of SSBs leads to weight gain in both adults and children, and reducing SSBs will significantly impact the prevalence of obesity and its related diseases,” the study said.
The lead authors are Dr Lennert Veerman, Dr Lumbwe Chola, Professor Benn Sartorius, Mercy Manyema, Professor Demetre Labadarios, Aviva Tugendhaft and Professor Karen Hofman.
The paper draws reference to the 2003 SA Demographic and Health Survey as well as the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which showed that in less than a decade, obesity prevalence had risen from 8.8 percent to 10.6 percent in men.
In women, levels increased from 27.4 percent to 39.2 percent.
The researchers conducted a mathematical simulation model to estimate the effect of a 20 percent SSB tax on the prevalence of obesity, using 2012 as the baseline year.
They found that by instituting a 20 percent tax, in other words, a 20 percent price increase per unit of SSBs, there was a predicted reduction of 36 kilojoules a day, resulting in a 3.8 percent reduction of obesity in men and 2.4 percent reduction in obesity in women. That would translate to a decrease of more than 220 000 obese adults in the country.
“While SSBs alone may not be the only reason for an increase in body fat, these fizzy drinks do not contain any essential nutrients, have a high sugar content and a strong link to weight gain. Drinking just one SSB a day increases the likelihood of being overweight by 27 percent for adults and 55 percent for children,” said Hofman, a senior author of the paper and director of Priceless-SA.
Manyema said they were confident of the results as they were based on scientific evidence and the sound expertise of the team.
“This study is the first of its kind on the African continent. Similar studies have been generated in Australia and India. However, our consumption levels are different. We have data now specific to our context,” she said.
“It is our hope that this paper will inform the drive already started by the national Department of Health through the National Strategic Plan for the Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (2013-17), which lists taxes in foods high in sugar as potential ‘best buy’ for addressing diet and obesity.”
The Star