Multnomah Health Advocates Work To Get Soda Tax on the Ballot


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Health advocates hoping to raise an estimated $28.4 million per year from a soda tax in Multnomah County are working to gather around 25,000 signatures to get the measure on the ballot. The tax would allow for an 18 cent tax for an average 12-ounce soda or 51 cents per liter of soda, with revenues helping to fund early childhood education, reading and literacy initiatives and school programs encouraging nutrition, physical education, school gardens and more. Health advocates like Michael Bloomberg are working together to get the initiative off the ground with seed funding. Also, the American Heart Association, who have helped pass similar policies across the nation have started a local advocacy group called,"Yes for Healthy Kids and Education Coalition" aiming to build support ...

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Panera Bread Posts Added Sugars on Self-Serve Beverages



Eating and drinking healthier can be a challenge, especially when dining out. Now, Panera Bread announced their series of sugary beverages that will show the nutritional information, calories, and amount of sugars for each beverage. The first national restaurant company to post calories and sugars in its beverages, Panera plans to continue improving transparency for their customers, as they were one of the first chains to post calories on menus in 2010. “We believe people deserve to know exactly what’s in their drink so they can make the best choice for their lifestyle,” said Sara Burnett, Director of Wellness, Panera Bread explained in their press release.  “We know more and more guests are looking to reduce their added sugar consumption, and we’re providing an ...

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New Healthy Drinks Act Is Proposed To Help Students Health In the Philippines



To help decrease the increasing rates of obesity and ensure greater health for students in the Philippines, a congressman announced on Monday, March 13th, 2017 a Healthy Drinks bill for all public schools in the country. The act hopes to improve the diet of over 21 million students in the country where more than 46,000 public schools will have to limit, if not ban, the sales of soft drinks and energy drinks in schools. Ang Edukasyon, party-list Rep. Salvador Belaro explained to radio dzBB, that the World Health Organization (WHO) has encouraged banning or limiting sugary drinks, and now that sugary beverages are so cheap in Filipino schools, it has become a popular drink of choice for students during recess time. However popular sugary drinks are for kids, they usually contain ...

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Old Storage Room Gets Revamped Into A Garden in an Oklahoma High School



Gardens in schools are now becoming commonplace, as more and more schools see the benefits that gardens bring. Having a garden on campus not only opens up students learning to plant healthy foods but also encourages students to learn how to use science and math in gardens and may be used towards creating healthy eating environments in some cases. Rush Springs High School is now taking advantage of what used to be a storage room and transforming into an Aeroponic Tower Garden space. The class that goes with the garden is an entrepreneurial S.T.E.M class, teaching students not only how to grow healthy foods, but also allowing students to use food grown as a fundraiser to pay for more class projects, S.T.E.M teacher Larry Lance explained to local ABC News. Lance first came up ...

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Chancellor Confirms Sugary Beverage Tax



Sugary drink taxes and other policy restrictions on sugary drinks are growing in popularity across the globe to help reduce sugar intake in order to decrease rising obesity levels. Now British Chancellor Philip Hammond announced a two-tier levy of 18 pounds on drinks that have five grams of sugar per 100ml and the higher 24-pound rate on those with more than eight grams per 100ml. The British Soft Drinks Association opposes the tax, but the Obesity Health Alliance supports the tax. The tax set to be implemented starting in April 2018 doesn't include milk or pure fruit juice drinks but does include some alcoholic drinks. A spokeswoman from the Obesity Health Alliance told local news Sunderland Echo, "This is a significant step in the battle against obesity and the Government ...

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CA City Perris Passes Ordinance For No More DeFault Soda in Kids’ Meals!


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Congratulation to California, where an ordinance passed last night in the city of Perris (71% Latino) requires restaurant's kids' meals to no longer serve sugary drinks as part of the default option of the meal. Now parents and kids can see the healthy choice as the easy choice when dining out. Families can still order sugary beverages for their kids, but as the American Heart Association warns, just one soda exceeds the limit for sugars for a whole day for teens and kids. One can of regular soda contains nearly 10 teaspoons of sugar and 140 calories. Policies that promote healthier beverages are important for many kids in the United States who consume at least one sugary beverage a day. In fact, most two-thirds of children in the United States consumed at least one sugary ...

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South African Sugary Beverage Policies Effective For Rural Schools



In Vhembe-Mutale school district, sugary drinks have been banned since the beginning of the school year. The change has been successful and popular according to Health24, as parents like Tambulani Mbedzi explained that her child was suffering from headaches and found out that it was due to drinking a lot of sugary drinks at school being sold by hawkers. Children would buy two or three bottles of sugary drinks at a lower price from these hawkers that were selling sugary drinks to kids at school. The deputy principal at the school, Rendani Nemufulwi complained that because of these hawkers, that would even try to sell to kids secretly, kids were drinking tons of sugary drinks at the school and were less inclined to eat nutritious foods. Parents are happy about the changes, ...

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Santa Fe May Set Special Election for May 2nd on Vote about Sugary Drinks Tax



Many supporters and opposers of the newly proposed 2-cents-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages stood in lines for hours to voice their opinions about whether the governing body should put the question before voters during May's special election. Supporters of the tax, like Paul Gibson wanted the special election, explaining that it is a worthy investment to spend the estimated $85,000 for the special election as voters will be distracted by other issues in May. However, employees of the soda industry urged to delay the vote or find another funding source for pre-K, as the tax is proposed to support funding of pre-kindergarten for low-income families. One employee, Joseph Sanchez explained to Santa Fe New Mexican news, that they aren't bad people and they support help for ...

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New Ban on Soda for EBT Card Holders Is in Discussion



Soda's, sweet teas, energy drinks, and sugary beverages of all types have been the uproar of news lately as many cities across the nation are considering sugary beverage taxes to reduce high rates of type 2 diabetes, obesity and other related diseases. Now lawmakers in various states including Tennesse, Florida, and Michigan are considering a ban on soda for all purchasers who want to use food stamps or state-issued Bridge Electronic Bank Transfer (EBT) cards. Even Arkansas introduced a similar bill last year, where EBT users would not be allowed to purchase foods that have "sufficient nutritional value". The bill was passed but is now waiting for the votes from the Senate, according to local 5 News online. These bans would not allow any EBT card user from being able to purchase ...

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