Is that a fat joke?
On Monday March 11, 2013 Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York City put a ban on the sale of sugary drinks larger than 16 ounces. This ban affects all food-service establishments. Customers will still be able to buy as many refills as they want. Grocery stores are still going to sell large drink containers, so will 7-Eleven and other franchises. A sugary drink according to the city is a nonalcoholic beverage that has been presweetened by the manufacturer with sugar. The drink also must be over 25 calories per 8 ounces in order to be considered a sugary drink. Some of the drinks banned will be lemonade, sports drinks, slushies, sweetened tea and coffee. Customers will still be able to buy milkshakes and lattes because there is more milk than sugar in them. Also diet sodas and fruit smoothies with no additional sweeteners will still be available. Regular coffee will still be sold as long as it is not presweetened. The baristas can add three to five teaspoons of sugar before they serve them to the customer. Once the customer has their drink they can add as much sugar to it as they want. If a store does not follow this ban the health inspectors are allowed to issue a fine of $200 but these fines will not be in affect until June. This ban seems permanent for now so New Yorkers better get used to it. This ban is acceptable and due to the problems our country has with obesity, we need to take as many precautions that we can to prevent it.
