Higher Tax On Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Could Prevent Obesity And Diabetes Cases, Study Says

NEW YORK - OCTOBER 07: Soda is displayed in a market October 7, 2010 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing an initiative that would prohibit New York City's 1.7 million food stamp recipients from using the stamps, a subsidy for poor residents, to buy soda or other sugary drinks. Bloomberg has stressed that obesity among the poor has reached critical levels. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) (2010 Getty Images)

A nationwide tax could do wonders for your waistline and wallet.

Increasing the tax on sugary drinks by just a penny-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages could cut consumption and disease, according to a study conducted by Y. Claire Wang, MD, ScD, of Columbia University in New York City, and colleagues, eventually helping to prevent heart attacks, strokes, cases of diabetes and premature deaths.

According to the study, Americans consumed 13.8 billion gallons of sugar-sweetened beverages in 2009, or approximately 45 gallons of soda, fruit punch, sweetened tea, sports drinks, and all other beverages with added caloric sweeteners per person.