Council’s sugar decision a good first step

Media release Wednesday 27 July 2016

Council’s sugar decision a good first step

Auckland Council announced today that it is dropping sugary drinks from vending machines in its 21 leisure centres in a show of leadership in the battle against obesity and type 2 diabetes. The sugary drinks will be replaced with water, unflavoured milk, 100% fruit juice, diluted fruit juice with no added sugar and artificially sweetened soft drinks.

According to council’s Chief Executive Stephen Town, this is just the first step in Auckland Council’s efforts while it considers healthy choices across all areas of council operations.

New Zealand Dental Association spokesperson, Rob Beaglehole congratulates Auckland Council on its decision and agrees this is just the first step. He hopes to see the Council take the next bold step by removing artificially sweetened drinks.

“Artificially sweetened drinks such as ‘diet’ soft drinks remain a significant concern, as they maintain a taste for sweetness which often leads to continued poor diet. Many are also very acidic and still cause high levels of dental decay,” he says.

The decision to remove sugary drinks from leisure centres sends a clear message about Auckland Council’s commitment to the health of people in Auckland.

“It is not uncommon for young children to be admitted to hospital in need of a general anaesthetic to have their teeth restored or extracted due to decay or infection caused by the consumption of sugar,” says Beaglehole.

“So, good on Auckland Council for this small step,” he says, “but the New Zealand Dental Association urges all councils around the country to adopt a ‘switch to water’ policy by completely removing all sugary drinks including artificially sweetened beverages from their premises.”

ENDS

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