The SPH Office for Research welcomes Tonatiuh Barrientos-Gutiérrez, MD, MS, PhD, from the National Institute of Public Health, Mexico where he serves as director of Reproductive Health Research Area and director of Analytical Laboratory for Tobacco Compounds in the Center for Population Health Research. 

 

Mexico is a world leader in obesity and diabetes. Focalized and population-wide programs have been implemented to reduce excess weight but their impact has been limited, leading to the discussion of new and potentially more effective public health interventions. Structural interventions, such as financial disincentives, aim to sustainably change the environment in which persons live, facilitating healthier decisions. In January 2014 the Mexican Government implemented a 1-peso-per-liter tax to industrialized sugar sweetened beverages, in an attempt to disincentivize consumption and reduce their important caloric contribution to the Mexican diet.