Portion Control

90 calories, no corn syrup

We've been drinking soft drinks for most of our lives, but ever-louder warnings from doctors have induced us to cut back consumption. We never warmed to the taste of diet sodas, which have health risks that their sugary brethren do not; substitution is no solution.

When we absolutely must have some sweet fizziness, we turn to smaller cans of so-called "natural" sodas that purportedly contain fruit juices with no added sugar. They're more expensive than the popular brands, but dealing with diabetes would be much more costly.

Despite my sympathy with Mayor Bloomberg's goals, I was happy to see that the deliciously named Judge Tingling stayed the implementation of New York City's regulations that would have banned large sugary drinks.

In addition to the defects in a regulation that had glaring loopholes, the larger issue was whether the state had the power to regulate substances and activities that may cause long-term harm but did not threaten imminent danger to public health. Judge Tingling drew a welcome line in the sand. © 2013 Stephen Yuen