Last week you may have seen some media coverage of an article in the New England Journal of Medicine that concluded that some foods are more likely to cause weight gain over long-term periods than others.

Today, we thought we’d share with you an editorial that appeared in the Los Angeles Times over the weekend about this new research, which did not show cause and effect.  According to the editorial board’s perspective, it showed “why singling out a particular food may not be such a good idea” when it comes to taxation as a means to combat obesity.

We agree.  Taxes don’t make people healthy.  We’ve blogged before to let our readers know that diet and exercise do that.  Obesity is a serious and complex problem that requires comprehensive solutions.  It cannot be solved by simplistic approaches that single out particular foods or beverages. Education about diet and exercise is the most effective way to help people lead a healthy, balanced and active lifestyle.