Dr. Kelly D. Brownell, professor of psychology and director of Yale University's Center for Eating and Weight Disorders, outlined details of the approach in a 1997 report in the journal, Addictive Behavior. It got precious little news media attention. Conservative publications and commentators, including the somewhat portly Rush Limbaugh, denounced the idea as more government meddling in the private lives of citizens. Brownell's ideas, however, opened the eyes of other researchers. Their preliminary studies hint that a tax on high-fat foods may work, just as it works for cigarettes.
Experts agree that increased cigarette taxes do reduce consumption.
Raise the per-pack price by 10 percent, and consumption falls by 4 percent. The government would tax unhealthy foods to discourage consumption. The proceeds would go to a special fund to encourage healthier lifestyles through educational programs and other efforts. The government also would subsidize healthy foods to make them less expensive. Carrots, Brownell says, should be dirt cheap.