新奇事件簿 向糖征税利大于弊（在线收听）

Governments in the United States and United Kingdom are waging a war on sugar in the interests of public health. Both countries claim that the overconsumption of sugar by much of the population is detrimental to people's well-being. On Thursday, the U.S. government issued new dietary guidelines that strongly recommend people receive less than 10 per cent of their daily calorie intake from added sugar. On the same day, British Prime Minister David Cameron said he has not ruled out the idea of a tax on sugar to encourage consumers to buy food with reduced levels of the sweet stuff. Politicians in the U.K. are debating how a reduction in the intake of sugar could help alleviate Britain's rising rates of obesity.

因公共健康危机，英美政府展开“糖战”。据两国政府所说，糖摄入量超标有害公民健康。周四，美国政府公布最新膳食指南，强烈建议民众将糖中卡路里摄入量减少到10%以下。同一天，英国首相大卫·卡梅伦表示，为了鼓励民众减少甜食摄入量，他不排除向糖征税。就如何减少糖分摄入量，降低英国肥胖率，英国政界展开热论。

The American and British governments both cite a study conducted in Mexico that showed a tax on sugary, carbonated drinks led to a reduction in consumption. The tax was implemented on January 1, 2014 and purchases of the taxed beverages went down by 12 per cent by December of that year. Sales of mineral water increased by four per cent over the same period. An alternative to taxing sugared drinks is to reduce the level of sugar in them. Researchers at Queen Mary University in London say that reducing the sugar content in sugar-sweetened drinks by 40 per cent over five years could prevent one million cases of obesity in the U.K. Researchers say people might not even notice the changes.

英美政府均提及了墨西哥的一项调查，调查显示“糖税”“碳酸饮料税”能够减少民众的糖分摄入量。2014年1月，墨西哥开始实施“糖税”，截止到同年12月，含税饮料销量减少12%。矿泉水销量同年增加4%。除了征收“饮料税”，政府还可以减少饮料含糖量。伦敦玛丽女王大学研究员表示，5年内将饮料含糖量降低40%，100万英国民众将因此免于肥胖症。研究人员表示，民众甚至不会注意到这些变化。