14 DAY TRIAL // Dutch health official Paul van der Velpen is nothing if not convinced that sugar is a highly addictive and dangerous drug. Hence his urging that measures to tightly regulate sugar consumption be implemented as soon as possible.
The interesting part is that Paul van der Velpen is not just any health official. On the contrary, he is the head of Amsterdam's health service.
Otherwise put, this piece of news boils down to the fact that a health official living in a city where the sale of cannabis is very much legal is asking that sugar consumption be regulated by law.
Paul van der Velpen is probably well aware of the irony of the situation. Still, he maintains that, as several scientific investigations have shown, sugar is one of the most powerful and addictive drugs in the world.
“Sugar upsets that mechanism. Whoever uses sugar wants more and more, even when they are no longer hungry. Give someone eggs and he'll stop eating at any given time. Give him cookies and he eats on even though his stomach is painful,” the health official argued, as cited by The Telegraph.
“This may seem exaggerated and far-fetched, but sugar is the most dangerous drug of the times and can still be easily acquired everywhere.”
“Just like alcohol and tobacco, sugar is actually a drug. There is an important role for government. The use of sugar should be discouraged,” he added.
Paul van der Velpen recommends that, in order to rid people of their addiction to sugar, the government no longer allow schools to sell sweets and soft drinks.
Besides, sports drinks that are advertised as healthy should be exposed as containing loads of sugar, and health insurers should financially support obese clients who wish to undergo addiction therapy.
Recent reports show that, over the past twenty years, the number of obese people in The Netherlands has nearly doubled. From this standpoint, Paul van der Velpen might really be on to something.