The World Health Organisation is calling for increased taxes on alcohol and Sugary-Sweetened Beverages, SSBs, to reduce deaths from drinking alcohol and unhealthy behaviours.
In a press statement yesterday, The WHO noted that globally, 2.6 million people die from drinking alcohol every year and over eight million from an unhealthy diet. It added that implementing a tax on alcohol and SSBs will reduce these deaths.
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Part of the data released by the WHO yesterday shows a low global rate of taxes being applied to unhealthy products such as alcohol and SSBs. Their findings show that the majority of countries are not using taxes to incentivise healthier behaviours.
A 2017 study shows that taxes which increase alcohol prices by 50 percent would help avert over 21 million deaths over 50 years, and generate nearly $17 trillion in additional revenues. This is equivalent to the total government revenue of eight of the world’s largest economies in one year.
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