Health News
- Students In 2 Appalachian Ohio High Schools Help Reduce Classmates' Consumption Of Sugary Drinks, A Bane In The Region
In a region where sweet-tea and soda is more popular than water, student-led groups in Appalachian Ohio were successful in reducing the amount of sugary drinks students consumed, reports The Ohio State University's Center for Clinical and Translational...
- Ama Calls Obesity A Disease; Could Spur Coverage For Treatment
The American Medical Association now recognizes obesity as a disease, which may make it easier for Kentuckians to fight the state's obesity epidemic by gaining insurance coverage for necessary medical treatment. Under the leadership of newly...
- Is There A Correlation Between Food-stamp Use And Obesity? Some Say Yes, And That Corporations Are Getting Fat In The Process
"Who's getting fat off food stamps?" asks ABC News' Alan Farnham, reporting that a record number of Americans -- 46.7 million, or nearly 1 in 7 -- now uses the benefit, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. It cost $72 billion...
- Nyc Deeply Split On Bloomberg Plan To Ban Supersize Sodas
Bloomberg with Linda I. Gibbs, deputy mayor for health. (New York Times photo by Chang W. Lee)In a bold move to curb obesity, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to ban the sale of supersize sodas and other sugary drinks by restaurants,...
- Penny-per-ounce Tax On Sugar Drinks Could Save $17 Billion, Cut Consumption And Prevent Disease And Death, Academics Say
More than $17 billion in medical costs over 10 years could be saved if sugared drinks were taxed at 1 cent per ounce, and it would prevent 95,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 8,000 strokes and 26,000 premature deaths, say researchers at Columbia University...
Health News
Mayors and AMA say food stamps shouldn't pay for soft drinks
Louisville's Greg Fischer is among 18 mayors asking Congress to ban sugary drinks from purchase under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly called food stamps. One day after their June 18 letter, the American Medical Association adopted a policy supporting the removal of sugar-sweetened drinks from SNAP.
In a the letter sent to congressional leaders, the mayors said it is "time to test and evaluate approaches limiting" the use of the subsidies for sugar-laden beverages to fight obesity and diseases linked to obesity, reports Jennifer Peltz of The Associated Press.
At its annual meeting, the AMA took several steps toward controlling the country's increasing obesity problem, including calling obesity a disease, an action that may prompt insurers to cover medical treatments aimed against obesity. ?The AMA is working to improve the nation?s health care outcomes, particularly cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which are often linked to obesity,? said AMA President Dr. Ardis Hoven of Lexington. ?Removing sugar-sweetened beverages from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will help encourage healthier beverage choices.?
This isn't the first attempt to ban soda from SNAP. The Department of Agriculture, where the program is housed, turned down such a request from New York City's Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2010. The city had proposed a two-year experiment to see if a sugary beverage ban would reduce obesity among food-stamp recipients. But, the department rejected the plan and said a soda ban would ?perpetuate the myth? that food stamp users make poor shopping decisions, The New York Times reported. Read about Kentucky's SNAP program here.
The soda lobby, the American Beverage Association, said sugary drinks shouldn't be singled out as a cause of obesity. It called obesity "a complex health condition that affects Americans of all income levels." Last year, more than 47 million low-income Americans used food stamps.
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/18/2683656/18-mayors-limit-use-of-food-stamps.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/18/2683656/18-mayors-limit-use-of-food-stamps.html#storylink=cpy
In a the letter sent to congressional leaders, the mayors said it is "time to test and evaluate approaches limiting" the use of the subsidies for sugar-laden beverages to fight obesity and diseases linked to obesity, reports Jennifer Peltz of The Associated Press.
At its annual meeting, the AMA took several steps toward controlling the country's increasing obesity problem, including calling obesity a disease, an action that may prompt insurers to cover medical treatments aimed against obesity. ?The AMA is working to improve the nation?s health care outcomes, particularly cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which are often linked to obesity,? said AMA President Dr. Ardis Hoven of Lexington. ?Removing sugar-sweetened beverages from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program will help encourage healthier beverage choices.?
This isn't the first attempt to ban soda from SNAP. The Department of Agriculture, where the program is housed, turned down such a request from New York City's Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2010. The city had proposed a two-year experiment to see if a sugary beverage ban would reduce obesity among food-stamp recipients. But, the department rejected the plan and said a soda ban would ?perpetuate the myth? that food stamp users make poor shopping decisions, The New York Times reported. Read about Kentucky's SNAP program here.
The soda lobby, the American Beverage Association, said sugary drinks shouldn't be singled out as a cause of obesity. It called obesity "a complex health condition that affects Americans of all income levels." Last year, more than 47 million low-income Americans used food stamps.
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/18/2683656/18-mayors-limit-use-of-food-stamps.html#storylink=cpy
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/18/2683656/18-mayors-limit-use-of-food-stamps.html#storylink=cpy
- Students In 2 Appalachian Ohio High Schools Help Reduce Classmates' Consumption Of Sugary Drinks, A Bane In The Region
In a region where sweet-tea and soda is more popular than water, student-led groups in Appalachian Ohio were successful in reducing the amount of sugary drinks students consumed, reports The Ohio State University's Center for Clinical and Translational...
- Ama Calls Obesity A Disease; Could Spur Coverage For Treatment
The American Medical Association now recognizes obesity as a disease, which may make it easier for Kentuckians to fight the state's obesity epidemic by gaining insurance coverage for necessary medical treatment. Under the leadership of newly...
- Is There A Correlation Between Food-stamp Use And Obesity? Some Say Yes, And That Corporations Are Getting Fat In The Process
"Who's getting fat off food stamps?" asks ABC News' Alan Farnham, reporting that a record number of Americans -- 46.7 million, or nearly 1 in 7 -- now uses the benefit, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. It cost $72 billion...
- Nyc Deeply Split On Bloomberg Plan To Ban Supersize Sodas
Bloomberg with Linda I. Gibbs, deputy mayor for health. (New York Times photo by Chang W. Lee)In a bold move to curb obesity, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to ban the sale of supersize sodas and other sugary drinks by restaurants,...
- Penny-per-ounce Tax On Sugar Drinks Could Save $17 Billion, Cut Consumption And Prevent Disease And Death, Academics Say
More than $17 billion in medical costs over 10 years could be saved if sugared drinks were taxed at 1 cent per ounce, and it would prevent 95,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 8,000 strokes and 26,000 premature deaths, say researchers at Columbia University...