Sweetened drinks add to the problem of childhood obesity, according to Andrew Hysall, associate vice president of advocacy and public policy for the Washington, D.C.-based Campaign for Healthy Kids. A proposal to add a 2-cent per ounce tax to those beverages has little chance of getting through the Mississippi Legislature, however.

Hysall told Business Week magazine that although a tax alone would not solve the problem, he believes parents would reconsider their choices if the drinks were made more expensive.

Common sense, as well as science, tells that the consumption of empty calories leads to weight gain," Hysall told Business Week.

Rep. John Mayo, D-Clarksdale, sponsored a bill to add a tax to sweet bottled and canned drinks, saying the state needs to takes steps to battle its obesity rate, which has been the highest in the nation for years. In 2009, 32.5 percent of Mississippi's adults were obese, while 44.4 percent of children were obese, reports the Trust for America's Health.

Regardless, House Ways and Means Chairman Percy Watson, D-Hattiesburg, told Business Week he doesn't expect to bring the bill up for a vote. Gov. Haley Barbour has also said he would veto the bill if it gets to his desk for a signature.

Previous Comments

ID

156148

Comment

Is there no issue that the Democrats think shouldn't be solved by government? Is there no end to their intrusiveness? And they wonder why people distrust government.

Author

WMartin

Date

2010-02-18T10:30:53-06:00

ID

156159

Comment

Is there no corporate profit that legislators both GOP and Dem will work to protect no matter how harmful their products may be to consumers? Is there no end to their blatant pandering and profiteering? And they wonder why people distrust their elected officials.

Author

Jeffery R

Date

2010-02-18T12:25:53-06:00