Fighting Obesity with a Fat Tax

The fat tax is applied to the purchase of food considered fattening, such as soda and pastries. The theory behind the fat tax is that it would discourage the consumption of unhealthy foods.

However, there is a lot of controversy surrounding the tax, as low income families can not always afford healthy foods and the tax may place an unfair burden on those families.

Foods that are linked to obesity are the foods and beverages which are most often subject to the fat tax. The tax is meant to be used to prevent health problems caused by obesity, such as educational and preventative programs in schools. These programs are meant to teach healthy eating habits, as well as explore the caloric count in foods that are known to cause obesity.

Caloric count education can help to fight obesity and many of these programs are funded through the fat tax. However, there is a need for more than just education, such as a reduction in the price of healthy foods. Arguments for the fat tax include the idea that the tax should be used to offset the expense of healthy foods, especially for low income families.

The list of foods which include the fat tax, are changed as new research indicates which foods are most commonly linked to obesity. The risk of obesity increase greatly for instance, when individuals consume sugary drinks such as soda, so there is a fat tax imposed on soda.

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