• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Sugar Tax

JoeyGraf20

JoeyGraf20

Active Member
Messages
26
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
The cold
Do you think diabetics should be charged sugar tax?
I know without being T1 I definitely wouldn’t be buying as many sugar products as I do to control my lows while gyming and exercise
 
I thought about this and speaking as devils advocate here, I don’t see why not, technically you don’t have to buy sugar products as you can get glucose gels on prescription from your GP, I suppose it’s a choice to buy jelly babies, juices etc. I also think the admin around it for retailers etc would be a nightmare.

Bear in mind I’m T2 diet only so don’t medically need to buy sugary stuff so you may not agree with me ;)
 
Well I didn’t know I could get the glucose gels on prescription so May look at that as with work I’ve been asked to do a half marathon which will be a tall order for me considering I can’t walk up hill on a treadmill for 15mins without dying

Was thinking more for government to reimburse if receipt proof is there but probably agree with you there, even if you’re not a real one (disclaimer - joking just in case I get shouted at)
 
Why not? It seems to me that we pay less taxes to the state than our treatment costs, and the state still has to build roads, schools, hospitals, etc. for taxpayers' money. The state budget is not a fountain of gold, and the fact that we are alive at all, although not everyone would be able to buy expensive medicines for themselves, is already very cool
 
So if type 1s got relief from the sugar tax, then type 2s should get VAT back on low carb products which generally are more expensive than the high carb equivalents?

Edit for typo
 
Last edited:
JoeyGraf20 said:
Do you think diabetics should be charged sugar tax?
I know without being T1 I definitely wouldn’t be buying as many sugar products as I do to control my lows while gyming and exercise
Click to expand...
What do you pay for a box of sugar cubes now with sugar tax and before?
I may be visiting the UK next year, maybe I can let my holiday pay for itself by filling my car with sugar cubes and selling them on the black market.
 
Antje77 said:
What do you pay for a box of sugar cubes now with sugar tax and before?
I may be visiting the UK next year, maybe I can let my holiday pay for itself by filling my car with sugar cubes and selling them on the black market.
Click to expand...
I believe the sugar tax is currently only applies to soft drinks, so step away from the sugar cubes!

www.gov.uk

Soft Drinks Industry Levy comes into effect

The 'Sugar Tax' will help to reduce sugar in soft drinks and tackle childhood obesity.
www.gov.uk www.gov.uk
 
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk

Sugar tax | Institute for Government

The soft drinks industry levy (SDIL), or ‘sugar tax’, is a levy applied to UK-produced or imported soft drinks containing added sugar.
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk

Seems to apply only to drinks with sugar added to them. Does not seem to apply to sweets or tablets or jelly babies.
 
Yeah I only buy lucozade to control mine, sweets and things like that I find hard to stop at 4 and nail the whole pack so don’t buy them - no self control

You’d have to educate me a bit more on the T2 argument there as always thought you get that due to lifestyle rather than medical so I have no basis to reply on something I don’t know anything about
 
JoeyGraf20 said:
Yeah I only buy lucozade to control mine, sweets and things like that I find hard to stop at 4 and nail the whole pack so don’t buy them - no self control

You’d have to educate me a bit more on the T2 argument there as always thought you get that due to lifestyle rather than medical so I have no basis to reply on something I don’t know anything about
Click to expand...

T2 also has genetic links, not just lifestyle as even healthy people eating what the govt thinks is a healthy diet develop T2.
 
T2 can also is also connected to other conditions like poly cystic ovary syndrome (which I have) there are many reasons for T2.

I had really healthy lifestyle, I only put on loads of weight when I became insulin resistant. Gestational diabetes can lead to T2.

I have a friend who was an officer in special forces, you have to be extremely fit and healthy to be in that, he’s retired out the army now but still as fit as ever, runs, skis, surfs, slim ripped body, just been diagnosed T2 - sometimes it’s just on your card no matter what lifestyle you have
 
Going back to your question of submitting receipts to claim back VAT, I waited 20 weeks for a passport, me and hubby have been waiting since March for Lasting Power of Attorneys to come through- supposed to be a 4 week lead, told we’d now get them last week of October- do think submitting a receipt for a bag of jellybabies so you can claim back 12p is going to be high in their list - doubt it very much
 
The tax is paid by the manufacturer / bottler, amd then passed on down the chain to the retailers and then to the purchaser. The refund would need to go back up the chain so that the manufacturer can claim exemption. HMRC do not give back cash, they adjust your tax burden each year to acommodate errors and rebates.

I have just had to purchase a new mobility scooter which can be obtained VAT Free. I can claim because I am diabetic, no sweat. but if I was not then I would not be able to claim against any of my other co-morbidities (heart, lungs, kidneys, etc) since they are not legitimate exemption claims. So as an elderly gent I would not get my goods cheaper. Also the application has to be valid for VAT exemption, and the goods must be specific to my condition and not also useable by the general public. so a mobility scooter that is limited to 4 mph walking pace can be exempt, but not one that can go at 6 or 8 mph since that is for (old) boy racers.

The VAT restrictions are quite specific, and so sugar tax exemption would equally require similar restrictions I suspect.
 
JoeyGraf20 said:
Well I didn’t know I could get the glucose gels on prescription so May look at that as with work I’ve been asked to do a half marathon which will be a tall order for me considering I can’t walk up hill on a treadmill for 15mins without dying

Was thinking more for government to reimburse if receipt proof is there but probably agree with you there, even if you’re not a real one (disclaimer - joking just in case I get shouted at)
Click to expand...
It gets easier over time - I have to ramp up the incline now after months of dying also! I don't think I could do a marathon though :hilarious:
 
lovinglife said:
I don’t see why not, technically you don’t have to buy sugar products as you can get glucose gels on prescription from your GP,
Click to expand...
Some maybe able to but many of us have to self fund all our hypo treatment.
And have you ever tried those glucose gels? It is almost enough for me to constantly run my BG high to avoid the risk of that washing up liquid taste.

Putting taste aside, glucose gel is not a cheap hypo treatment. A single tube of glucose gel costs about £4. Four jelly babies cost about 25p. The government would have to collect a lot of sugar tax to fund every person in the UK treating every hypo with a NHS funded glucose gel.

They are a last resort for hypo treatment. The first thing is to eat some carbs (sugar) to avoid the hypo in the first place.
JoeyGraf20 said:
Well I didn’t know I could get the glucose gels on prescription
Click to expand...
Maybe someone should tell my GP. I definitely do NOT get hypo treatment on prescription.
There seems to be an assumption that because one person on the forum gets something on prescription, we all do.
Different GPs prescribe type 2 treatment at different levels. Different clinics prescribe different CGMs. Some clinics are more open to insulin pumps than others, …
My advice is to feel free to ask but make no assumptions about what the NHS will fund.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Lainie71 said:
It gets easier over time - I have to ramp up the incline now after months of dying also! I don't think I could do a marathon though :hilarious:
Click to expand...

Definitely regret saying yes like weights because it doesn’t effect my levels going low, just a slight increase when I push it ! Plus…running isn’t fun end of!!
 
On a slightly parallel path, if the NHS ever agrees that T2D is not a progressive disease, and that Remission is feasible and treatable, then us T2D who are non ID may find our entitlement to VAT exemption, and also free prescriptions, may be withdrawn. This would in turn apply to any sugar tax exemption. Only those on glucose lowering meds would be able to make claims, and they would have to provide evidence of the event This opens the door to needing to advise GP and or DVLA of hypo events occurring,
 
Last edited:
JoeyGraf20 said:
Yeah I only buy lucozade to control mine, sweets and things like that I find hard to stop at 4 and nail the whole pack so don’t buy them - no self control

You’d have to educate me a bit more on the T2 argument there as always thought you get that due to lifestyle rather than medical so I have no basis to reply on something I don’t know anything about
Click to expand...
I was told by my DSN before sugar tax came in that if I was needing to buy sugary drinks she would arrange to provide me with a tax exemption certificate, so I would seek advice from yours.
 
Your diabetic nurse is taking absolute rubbish. The only people who could ever issue a tax exemption certificate would be HMRC, and as it's the manufacturers that pay the tax, it would be them that would claim any exemption.
 
JoeyGraf20 said:
Yeah I only buy lucozade to control mine, sweets and things like that I find hard to stop at 4 and nail the whole pack so don’t buy them - no self control

You’d have to educate me a bit more on the T2 argument there as always thought you get that due to lifestyle rather than medical so I have no basis to reply on something I don’t know anything about
Click to expand...
Be careful using lucozade as hypo cure , due to the sugar content being reduced you now have to drink a much larger amount than you use to before the sugar content was reduced , it’s common with many of the sugar drinks , the only one that hasn’t been reduced is original Coke Cola I use mini cans of Coke Cola works quick and don’t have to drink a lot ,
 
Back
Top