A new Australian study suggests a 20 per cent tax on sugary drinks may prevent 3.7 million cases of tooth decay as well as 306,000 cases of gum disease or complete tooth loss nationally.

Health experts have thrown their support behind the proposal, which aligns with long-standing recommendations from the World Health Organization.

Researchers suggest money generated from the proposed tax could be used to strengthen oral health services, improving access and cutting costs at the dentist.

  • geematic@aussie.zoneEnglish
    9·
    23 hours ago

    “Suggest” and “could be used” are weasel words already. When they’re spoken by researchers with no say in how the budget is spent, i cant help feeling sceptical.

    More likely it gets lost into general revenue with only some big media buys and ad campaigns to show for it; (with message variations of “Govt good😀, Sugar bad☹️” )

    • arbilp3@aussie.zoneOPEnglish
      2·
      8 hours ago

      We can’t know for sure and it’s also up to us to support the research and and demand better dental care services.