Doctors say the health sector cannot fix the problem; They believe society needs to wake up and politics needs to show some leadership.
“It takes New Zealand to take sugar seriously. It kills far more people than alcohol, but we don’t treat sugar like alcohol, we have to get to a point where we are,” said Dr. Hood.
Associate Health Minister Peeni Henare says the government is looking into a solution.
“As the minister responsible here, we will investigate all possible levers to ensure that we can avoid this tidal wave of diabetes if you want,” he said.
“I hope we can make an announcement soon.”
Dr. Jackson says it’s that simple: Force the food industry to reduce the sugar in their products.
“Reduce our salt, reduce our sugar. To really improve the health of the population with very little government investment, it just takes a little bit of will.”
Because where there is a will, there is also a way.
“It’s very simple: you watch what you eat, you don’t drink carbonated beverages and you go for a walk,” says Letele.