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Australia must have ‘sugar tax’ to fight diabetes: Expert

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sugarCanberra : Australia should follow Britain’s lead and impose a “sugar tax” in order to curb the skyrocketing number of diabetes cases, a leading health expert said on Thursday.

Stephen Colagiuri, a diabetes expert and the only Australian to contribute to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) inaugural global report on the disease, said the number of people worldwide who live with diabetes had quadrupled since 1980.

According to the report – released on World Health Day – 422 million people worldwide were currently living with the condition, reports Xinhua news agency.

Colagiuri said Australia was one of the worst nations for feasting on sugary snacks, something evidenced by the high number of diabetes cases.

“We are also regrettably average in the increasing rates of diabetes that we see in Australia,” Colagiuri told the Australia Broadcasting Corp (ABC).

“And we’re fairly high up on the list of countries with regard to overweight and obesity, which is a major driver of diabetes.”

Colagiuri said government intervention was crucial to getting the message through to Australians that too much sugar can have negative effects on the human body.

He said a “sugar tax” – similar to the one enacted by the British government last month – was one way the government could tackle the problem and discourage Australians from seeking out sugary foods.

“A sugar tax will clearly not be the only solution to the problem, but there has never been a successful public health intervention which has not involved some form of legislation and regulation, and leaving the changes to be made on a voluntary basis simply doesn’t work,” he said.

World Health Day is a global health awareness day held every April 7.

Corona

Covid toll in Karnataka is a worrying sign for state government

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Even though Karnataka recorded the lowest number of Covid deaths in April since the virus struck first in 2020, the state is recording a rise in the positivity rate (1.50 per cent). Five people died from the Covid infections in April as per the statistics released by the state health department. In March, the positivity rate stood around 0.53 per cent. In the first week of April it came down to 0.38 per cent, second week registered 0.56 per cent, third week it rose to 0.79 per cent and by end of April the Covid positivity rate touched 1.19 per cent.

on an average 500 persons used to succumb everyday in the peak of Covid infection, as per the data. Health experts said that the mutated Coronavirus is losing its fierce characteristics as vaccination, better treatment facilities and awareness among the people have contributed to the lesser number of Covid deaths.

During the 4th and 6th of April two deaths were reported in Bengaluru, one in Gadag district on April 8, two deaths were reported from Belagavi and Vijayapura on April 30. The first Covid case was reported in the state in March 2020 and three Covid deaths were recorded in the month. In the following month 21 people became victims to the deadly virus, and May 2020 recorded 22 deaths. The death toll recorded everyday after May crossed three digits. However, the third wave, which started in January 2

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