Is a Ban on Large Sodas the Answer to Obesity?

While I applaud efforts to ameliorate staggering obesity levels among those most vulnerable, I dissent on the solutions. Virtually every proposal has been intended to scapegoat the trillion-dollar food industry. Missing are calls to engage the food and beverage behemoths.

The real enemy remains the entrenched positions taken by public health regulators and food marketers. To break the logjam, governments must consider a different tactic: offering industry "carrots" instead of "sticks." This can come in the form of tax incentives in exchange for unloading fewer calories on the consuming public.

Embracing the industry heavyweights will go a long way to accelerating progress. Without their involvement, we may very well lose yet another generation of children to obesity.