It was most disheartening the other day when the courts derailed Mayor Bloomberg’s effort to limit the size of soft drinks in the State of New York to 16 ounces. It seemed to me that for the sake of our citizens, reducing the size of soft drinks was a prudent thing to do. There is no doubt that based on existing evidence sugary drinks are devastatingly dangerous when it comes to maintaining good health.

Researchers have recently concluded that sugar-based drinks may be directly responsible for near to two hundred thousand deaths worldwide on a yearly basis. Many of these deaths are related to chronic ailments like heart disease, diabetes and cancer. And what’s even more striking, these deaths are increasingly prevalent in persons who are more disposed to consuming these sugary drinks: people under the age of forty five.

The path is clear then; if we can control the consumption of sugar it is quite possible that we will be able to reduce the incidence of many chronic illnesses including high blood pressure and diabetes. The effort of Mayor Bloomberg in New York is an excellent first step, but because of the entrenched financial interest of so many stakeholders, we know that this fight will not be easy. What Mayor Bloomberg has initiated is an effort at the state level through leveraging the authority of the courts, but we can also take action on the individual level. In fact, truth be told, the power of the people is greater than the power of the courts because people can speak with more authority through their actions and their pocket books.

Here are some things you can do right now to help us win the fight against sugar without a single word from the courts. These are not presented in any particular order.

1. Eliminate all sugary drinks form your diet. Start with one if you don’t want to quit cold turkey.

2. Do not purchase any food item with more than 10 grams of sugar per serving.

3. Cut out all sweet desserts like cake, pies and ice cream from your diet.

4. Discard the so called sports and health drinks from your diet.

5. Eliminate sugar substitutes like equal and splenda

6. Walk pass the snack food isle in your supermarket. Snack foods are loaded with sugar and other harmful ingredients.

7. Minimize your consumption of alcohol especially rum. These are sugar warehouses.

8. Reduce or eliminate the amount of juice you drink. Juices are marketed as healthy drinks but they are often loaded with sugar.

9. Cut out sodas altogether. Sodas are synonymous with sugar.

10. Drink pure water then drink more pure water. Water is the liquid of life.

These are just some of the steps you can take right now to help us win the fight against sugar. We can live healthy and happy lives free from the curse of plagues like diabetes and high blood pressure. This is an invitation to you to get involved today. Your health and the health of the world depend on it.

Kudos goes out to Mayor Bloomberg’s and everyone else for their efforts in this noblest of causes.