Israel MKs create Lobby for Health Promotion

In a surprising act to many in the country, MKs Eitan Cabel, Rachel Azaria and Yisrael Eichler set up Lobby for Health Promotion and promised the members that they would meet often and work to promote good dietary health in Israel. This was all done at an event held by the founding MKs and was visited by various parliamentarians and public representatives.

Cabel said that his grandfather died at a young age of diabetes complications in Yemen, even though the prevalence of the disease in that country was very low. Today it is up by 250% he said.

He vowed to push through legislation that would tax sweetened beverages, even though Health Minister Ya’acov Litzman, who was present for part of the meeting, said he opposes this because it could cause unemployment.

Cabel insisted: “I will table such a bill, and if it fails, I will do it again and again and again. The public will be with us on this. In the US, there were referenda in four states and all voted in favor of such a tax. I am not afraid of any of the [beverage] companies.”

Cabbel added that the committee’s recommendations included the marking of sugar content on food labels in the form of teaspoons and good or unhealthful food with green or red labels. Half of the general population and 70% of the economically disadvantaged are overweight or even obese, he said.

source: jpost.com