The Kenya Dental Association (KDA) has urged the government to raise taxes on sugary beverages.
Speaking during the opening of KDA 's 34th annual summit, the association chairman, Dr Andrew Wetende, said such measures will help lower the consumption of sweet drinks, which he said pose a major threat to the public's oral health.
"Sugar is the most addictive drug and what is worse is the fact that the addiction is trendy. To combat this issue, we propose more taxes to be levied on sweetened beverages like fizzy drinks and commercial juices," said Wetende.
He said members of the public are yet to consider the significance of oral health and its impact on general human health, adding that dynamic human lifestyles such as wide spread use of tobacco and alcohol consumption are among the leading factors that affect oral health, and can result to general health issues.
"We want the location and placement displays of the outlets dealing with production of sweetened beverages to be regulated through legislation, just like alcohol and tobacco,” he said.
The one-week summit is being held at Pride Inn Resort in Shanzu under the theme “excellence beyond dentistry".