War on diabetes: Singapore to set world's first ad ban for high-sugar drinks

Diabetes, a silent killer in developed and developing countries alike, is considered one of the top global health threats. Countries across the world take the war on sugar increasingly seriously– and now one East Asian country is moving ahead.

Singapore will become first country to ban advertising high-sugar drinks, as the government seeks to combat rising diabetes rates, the city-state's health ministry announced Thursday.

Such drinks, as well as medium-to-high sugar beverages, will also be required to bear labels grading their sugar content. The measures are only a start and Singapore will continue to explore a sugar tax or ban, the ministry said.

There are 13.7 percent of Singaporean adults with diabetes, the second-highest rate in developed nations, according to an International Diabetes Federation report in 2015.

Diabetes is caused by excessive sugar in the blood and can be divided into two types: type 1, which is genetic and cannot be treated, and type 2, which is caused by poor diet and lack of exercise.

It is thought that around 360,000 diabetics suffer from the type 2 condition in Singapore, one of Asia's largest per-capita sugar consumers.

In its crackdown on sugar, the Singaporean government has produced a martial arts promotional video, where the Guardian of Health uses sugar-defeating darts and sugar-wipeout techniques to kill the Sugar Archvillain.

The country's health authorities in 2016 also identified one of their top concerns regarding diabetes: white rice.

The food is considered more harmful than sugary drinks in causing disease, as researchers from Harvard University found that each plate of white rice eaten daily on a regular basis raises the risk of diabetes by 11 percent.

Sugar-related health issues have overwhelmed countries worldwide. As of last July, a total of 28 countries including the UK, Ireland, Mexico and seven American cities have announced taxation on sugary drinks.

Since April in 2018, the British government has imposed a sugar tax on food companies, stepping closer to curb childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes in the UK, while Lorenzo Fioramonti, Italian minister of education, recently proposed a sugar tax.