Soda taxes, soft drink consumption, and children's body mass index.
Taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages have been proposed to combat obesity. Using data on state sales taxes for soda and individual-level data on children, we examine whether small taxes are likely to change consumption and weight gain or whether larger tax increases would be needed. We find that existing taxes on soda, which are typically not much higher than 4 percent in grocery stores, do not substantially affect overall levels of soda consumption or obesity rates. We do find, however, that subgroups of at-risk children--children who are already overweight, come from low-income families, or are African American--may be more sensitive than others to soda taxes, especially when soda is available at school. A greater impact of these small taxes could come from the dedication of the revenues they generate to other obesity prevention efforts rather than through their direct effect on consumption.
Sturm
Roland
R
RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA, USA. sturm@rand.org
Powell
Lisa M
LM
Chriqui
Jamie F
JF
Chaloupka
Frank J
FJ
D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002253:Carbonated Beverages / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D003132:Commerce / Q000191:economics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005522:Food Services / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012574:Schools; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013660:Taxes / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013690:Television / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States