For quite some time now, obesity has been one of the UK’s most prevalent health problems; a lot of in-depth studies have been made on its causes and possible prevention – and on the related medical costs. The NHS spends well over £4 billion annually on obesity-related treatments, according to recent statistics, and that figure increases considerably if private (non-NHS) costs are included.

Therefore, it makes sense to tackle the obesity problem from every possible angle, and one that’s been suggested is taking action against some of the worst culprits, i.e. foods and beverages that are high in calories but very low in real nutrition. Many experts feel that in this regard, sugary, fizzy drinks of all brands are the number one offender, as they are consumed in quantity by a large percentage of adults and more than half of the country’s children and teens.

Research conducted by the British Heart Foundation with findings published in the British Medical Journal advanced the suggestion that adding a 20% tax to sugar-added soft drinks would reduce the rate of adult obesity by 1.3%, or about 180,000 UK citizens, which in turn would reduce obesity-related costs to the NHS. There have been no official estimates as to just how much that would amount to in pounds sterling.

Adding 20% tax to specified soft drinks would add about 40p to the price of a 2-litre bottle or about 12p on an average canned drink, generating around £276 million a year for the Treasury. Analysts have different opinions about who would be most affected and how much impact a price increase would actually have on the problem it’s trying to address. There are also varying ideas about how best to use the anticipated revenue.

Though there can be little doubt that sugary soft drinks contribute to overweight, obesity and all the related health problems, the debate is not over yet. If the tax is imposed it will be many years before its effect can really be evaluated.

This bleak prognosis has come from a series of reports by experts which have been commissioned by The Lancet, the prestigious medical bible. The doctors involved have produced a list of possible actions that they think should be taken to curb this rising epidemic, with their number one proposal being that a 10% tax be placed on food and drink that are high in calories.

An Epidemologist from Oxford University, Prof Klim McPherson, has said that the government has to take the same stance as it did with tobacco taxation, which has seen a dramatic reduction in the amount of smokers. He has told Sky News that a tax on high calories food and drinks wouldn’t be unpopular if people knew the full extent of the problem and they generally don’t know how to address it individually.