In light of the intention to cancel the tax on sugary drinks, today (Monday) Minister of Health Aryeh Deri instructed the professionals in his office to examine the rapid implementation of preventive measures as part of the fight against obesity and diabetes.
Deri's intention to examine measures to combat obesity was first published in Israel Hayom.
At the meeting, several steps came up for consideration, among them validation and the creation of a database that would make it possible to track sugar consumption according to different sections;
Promoting restrictions in legislation on the advertising of food harmful to health and promoting warnings about its harm;
Enforcement of the ban on the sale of sugary drinks and harmful food on school grounds, in accordance with the regulations published on the matter;
Examining additional regulatory measures towards the industry, which will ensure a significant and continuous decrease in sugar consumption in the future.
Health Minister Aryeh Deri, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
"Health Minister Deri expressed the recognition of the damage that sugar causes to public health - both in obesity and in diabetes, and expressed his commitment to continue the fight to promote a healthy lifestyle," the minister's office said.
Minister Deri said: "The Ministry of Health, which is in charge of public health, is obliged to act in practical ways to reduce the phenomena of obesity and diabetes. I will work with all my might in order to succeed in the fight."
The meeting was attended by the Director General of the Ministry of Health Prof. Nachman Ash, the incoming Director General Moshe Bar Siman Tov, the head of the Public Health Division Dr. Sharon Elrai-Price and other professionals from the Ministry of Health.
Those around the minister said that he sees great importance in the fight against obesity, and is interested in hearing about ways to fight it.
It is estimated that he will tend to adopt programs related to education and information, rather than measures such as taxation or raising prices that will hurt the citizens' pockets, this after Deri was exposed to data according to which the tax on sugary drinks did not reduce the amount of their general consumption.
Official data from the Bank of Israel, on the other hand, showed that since the imposition of the tax there has been a reduction of approximately 10% in the purchase of high-sugar drinks, and in the ultra-orthodox sector there was a greater decrease of 17% in consumption.
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