Taxing Sugary Drinks

The Mayor of San Francisco has recently stated that the consumption of non-diet soft drinks by school children is contributing to an obesity problem that is costing the city tens of millions of dollars in health care costs. In fact, a survey conducted by the San Francisco Health department found that for many school age kids, sugary drinks may total as much as ten percent of daily calorie consumption.

No doubt, this phenomeon is not limited to San Francisco or the state of California. And, of course, there's little wonder that type II diabetes is becoming a more frequent diagnosis and for individuals of younger ages.

Interestingly enough, as the mayor of San Francisco is focusing attention on this issue, so is the state---California is considering putting warning labels on non-diet soft drink cans.