Voters in three cities in California voted to place a one cent-per-ounce tax on sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages. Proponents of the ballot measure believe the soda tax will help keep kids healthy and cut down on obesity. This movement to tax sugary drinks is becoming popular in other states and worldwide. In Mexico, a tax on sugary beverages resulted in a 20% drop in sales. Listen to this story and debate both sides of a tax on sugary beverages.
Story Length: 1:59
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October 26, 2016
3:22
Eating a lot of sugar may change the brain and affect how many calories a person eats. There are many researchers trying to understand what controls our eating and one researcher is looking for a link between exposure to a diet high in sugar and obesity. There may be a way to control eating by using biochemistry, which will change the view that controlling eating is just a matter of willpower. Listen to hear more about research into the effect of sugar on the brain.
Read MoreNovember 14, 2014
4:38
Every day across the country, school cafeterias try to balance serving food that students want to eat and food that is healthy for students to eat. When federal nutrition standards increased the amount of fruits and vegetables students must have on their plate each day, schools and school districts adopted creative approaches to make sure that these fruits and vegetables didn’t go directly in the trash. This public radio story takes us to one of these innovative lunch rooms in Fort Collins, Colorado.
Read MoreJuly 10, 2014
4:56
As healthcare costs rise and obesity becomes a national problem, companies look for innovative ways to encourage employees to stay thin and healthy at work. But some have gone overboard and employees complain they are interfering with their freedoms. Listen to this public radio story to learn what compares are doing to try to control their health care costs.
Read MoreMay 16, 2014
2:59
Climate change will not only create extreme weather, but scientists have found that areas with more carbon dioxide grow less healthy crops. Although these crops are much larger in size, they lack nutrients such as zinc and iron. Listen to these findings on the long-term impact of CO2 on crops.
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