WHO Calls for Increased Taxes on Sugary Drinks and Alcohol

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that “health taxes are one of the most powerful tools we have to promote health and prevent disease,” presenting reports that consider tax pressure in this sector to be too weak. “By increasing taxes on products such as tobacco, sugary drinks, and alcohol, governments can reduce harmful consumption and unlock funds to finance vital health services,” said Tedros. The WHO explains that the sustained reduction in taxes on sugary drinks and alcohol has made these products increasingly cheaper in most countries, a trend that threatens to worsen diseases. These include obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, various types of cancer, and injuries, especially among children and young people. In its reports, released in this Swiss city, the UN health body considers that current tax systems are too weak to curb the consumption of products harmful to health. At the same time, health systems in many nations face growing financial pressure due to non-communicable diseases and injuries that could largely be prevented. Therefore, governments are urged to significantly tax sugary drinks and alcohol as an urgent public health and revenue-raising measure. The global market for sugary and alcoholic beverages generates billions of dollars in profits and fuels mass consumption worldwide. However, governments only capture a small portion of that value through health taxes, leaving societies with long-term health and economic costs.