The United Health Foundation has ranked Hawaii as the second-healthiest state in the nation.
While it’s good to know people in Hawaii are living relatively healthy lifestyles, we acknowledge that obesity is an issue in Hawaii, particularly in certain high-risk populations, Native Hawaiians among them.
For our own sake, and sake of the next generation, we must be diligent about improving overall health.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser recently reported that Gov. Neil Abercrombie is proposing a tax on all sugar-sweetened beverages. This is also reported as one of the recommendations of the Task Force on Childhood Obesity.
Taxing beverages won’t teach our young people to respect their bodies and minds by eating the right foods and exercising. This is a disappointing outcome from a task force that could have productively focused on the broader picture to encourage healthy eating and an active lifestyle. Instead, a "tax grab" is proposed that would collect revenue for the state coffers and ultimately affect our grocery bills.
Aside from being an ineffective way to address obesity, beverage tax policies hurt businesses, workers and an industry that serves as an important part of the economy, both nationally and here in Hawaii. The state’s beverage industry provides more than 1,200 jobs across the islands and helps support many thousands more workers in restaurants, grocery stores and other businesses that depend, in part, on beverage sales for their livelihood. Taxing beverages puts many of these local jobs at risk.
Finally, there is a dangerous precedent being set. Once the government reaches its long arm into people’s grocery carts, it won’t stop. There will be a parade of other food and beverages deemed "unhealthy," and eventually, we could see taxes and limitations on those items as well. Just last year, legislation was proposed in the state Legislature that targeted juice drinks, sports drinks, teas and nearly all beverages with sugar in it.
There are more choices than ever before at the grocery store with new kinds of beverages, different portion sizes and calories visible on the front of the label. It is consumer education — not punitive legislation — that will encourage people to make use of these healthier choices. If we want to get serious about obesity, it starts with education, not laws and regulations. The fact is, it is not the government’s job to grocery shop for your family. Good health starts with individual responsibility.
Sam Kass, senior policy adviser on healthy food initiatives at the White House, works with first lady Michelle Obama on her "Let’s Move!" initiative to reverse childhood obesity within a generation.
In a speech earlier this year, Kass explained: "The solutions to these challenges are deeper than a piece of legislation or a policy position. Indeed, we will only be successful when we can foster a new norm, where living an active lifestyle and eating healthy are our core values."
