RAWALPINDI: Pakistan has the 4th highest burden of type 2 diabetes worldwide with more than 19 million cases per year with increasing number of affected patients due to increased consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. General Secretary, Diabetic Association of Pakistan Professor Dr. Abdul Basit in a joint presser called the government to impose heavy federal excise duty (FED) on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) to protect the increasing cohort of the population affected due to heavy consumption of sugar. In a joint press conference organized by Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), Diabetic Association of Pakistan, Nation Development Organization, Scaling Up Nutrition Civil Society Alliance, Pakistan Medical Association, National Commission on the Rights of Children, Child Rights Movement, Pakistan Family Physicians, Senior Physician Forum, Pakistan Kidney Patients’ Association and other Public Health Advocates, the activists mentioned that as per World Health Organization (WHO) data around 2,200 individuals were dying per year in Pakistan due to serious non-communicable diseases caused by heavy intake of sugar.
The purpose of the press conference was to expose the interference of the beverage industry in fiscal policies rolled out by the government in Budget 2021-22. General Secretary, Diabetic Association of Pakistan Professor Dr. Abdul Basit said the high consumption of SSBs like sodas, juices and energy drinks by adults and children in Pakistan was one of the major causes of obesity and related non communicable diseases (NCDs) like heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, liver and kidney diseases, some types of cancers, and even tooth decay. The public and civil society organizations have resented that the government has imposed no tax on the sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) responsible for generating the major burden of non-communicable diseases.
