Given the medical and economic costs associated with Diabetes - and the alarming statistic the one in four Singaporeans already has diabetes or is at high risk of contracting it - few would disagree with the proposals by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to take tougher actions (ST, Dec 6): To ban high sugar drinks, to tax these drinks, to disallow their advertisement, or to stipulate prominent labels on them. Yet absent from the discourse is an evaluation and communication of how these proposals and their effects may vary (based either on MOH projections or case studies from abroad), the effectiveness of past and ongoing campaigns to increase awareness of excessive sugar consumption and of diabetes, as well as the persistence of these campaigns in the future. Continue reading →