Why a tax on fizzy drinks would help tackle the UK's £10bn diabetes epidemic

More than one in 20 people in the UK has type 2 diabetes, with consumption of sugary drinks proven to be a direct cause. Failing to tax them is irresponsible

While education remains a crucial factor in ensuring people maintain healthy diets, our latest research shows this alone is not enough: healthy eating is too difficult for typical British families. Too many factors - including an imbalance in the price of healthy and unhealthy food - push our behaviour in the wrong direction. Voluntary industry initiatives have not achieved enough and our food system needs a major overhaul to make healthy eating easier for everyone. The proposed, and often misunderstood, sugar tax has a role to play in this.

First, what would be taxed? After all, sugar appears in many foods, including many that are good for us, like fruit. The calls for a sugar tax are actually very specific: it should be a tax on soft drinks with added sugar - the largest source of sugar in our children's diets.