I wish to thank the NY Times for proving that I am not a crank (see below). When government officials make health policy, that policy should be grounded in science. Government officials are not used-car salesmen. The city Health Department should not adhere to the salesman’s credo of “selling the sizzle, not the steak.” Our people deserve better. Thus, my objection to the food stamp demonstration project banning the purchase of sweetened beverages (e.g., soda) is valid because the project does not seek to measure the health outcome of the ban. Remember the Wendy’s ad — “where’s the beef?”
E-Mails Reveal Dispute Over City’s Ad Against Sodas
By ANEMONA HARTOCOLLIS
New York City health officials debated the scientific validity of a video linking sugar consumption to weight gain.
In the midst of a legislative fight over taxing sodas last year, the New York City health department put together a media campaign about how drinking a can of soda a day “can make you 10 pounds fatter a year.”
But behind this simple claim was a protracted dispute in the department over the scientific validity of directly linking sugar consumption to weight gain — one in which the city’s health commissioner, Dr. Thomas A. Farley, overruled three subordinates, including his chief nutritionist. (Read more here.)
Photo credit - NY Times
