LONDON — Milkshakes and lattes will be subject to a sugar tax for the first time, U.K. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said Tuesday. Speaking ahead of the budget, Streeting said the government would remove the exemption that milk-based products currently have from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy in January 2028. The threshold at which the levy is imposed will also be lowered from 5 grams to 4.5 grams (g) per 100 milliliters (ml). Commonly dubbed the “sugar tax,” the levy, which was introduced in 2018 under the previous Conservative government, aims to reduce obesity and improve child health.  “Obesity robs children of the best possible start in life,” Streeting told MPs Tuesday. “It hits the poorest hardest — sets them up for a lifetime of problems.” Bottles and cartons of milkshakes, flavored milk,  sweetened yoghurt drinks, chocolate milk drinks, ready-to-drink coffees and milk substitute drinks will now be eligible for the levy. Drinks prepared in cafes and bars remain out of scope. The levy requires companies producing drinks that contain between 5g and 8g of sugar per 100ml to pay 19.4 pence per liter while drinks with 8g or more of sugar must pay 25.9 pence per liter. A government document published Tuesday said ministers expect the Treasury to raise between £40 million and £45 million a year as a result of the changes. The average sugar content in drinks has fallen by almost 50 percent since the levy’s introduction. It is associated with a fall in rotten tooth extractions in kids and an estimated 8 percent relative reduction in obesity levels among young girls. Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King’s Fund health think tank, said the measure was “not only common sense but also a quick win for government and, most importantly, for children and young people.”

KYIV — Russian forces struck a kindergarten in Kharkiv with killer drones on Wednesday morning, according to top Ukrainian officials. “There was a direct hit on a private kindergarten in the Kholodnoyarkiy district of Kharkiv. A fire started,” Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said in a statement. Officials added later that one person, an adult male, had died in the kindergarten strike, and all 48 children were distressed — though none were wounded — and had been evacuated from the site. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said seven people were injured in the nursery strike, which triggered a fresh wave of fury at Moscow. “They are receiving medical care. All children have been evacuated and are in shelters. According to preliminary information, many have an acute stress reaction,” Zelenskyy said on social media. “There is and cannot be any justification for a drone strike on a kindergarten. Russia is becoming more impudent. These strikes are Russia’s spit in the face of anyone who insists on a peaceful solution. Bandits and terrorists can only be put in their place by force,” Zelenskyy said. The Russian defense ministry has not yet issued a statements about strikes on Kharkiv.

Mortality rates for young adults have increased in Eastern Europe over the past decade, despite global death rates falling. Drug-use, suicide and war are among the causes of death that are rising in Eastern Europe, while earthquakes and climate-related disasters have also pushed up death rates in the region. The Global Burden of Disease report — published in The Lancet on Sunday and presented at the World Health Summit in Berlin — analyzed data from more than 200 countries and territories to estimate the leading causes of illness, mortality and early death worldwide from 1990 to 2023. Between 2000 and 2023, there was a notable rise in deaths among younger adults in Eastern Europe caused by HIV, self-harm and personal violence. In Central Europe, deaths from mental disorders and eating disorders have also risen sharply among teens over the decade. This reflects a global trend — a rise in mental health disorders, with worldwide rates of anxiety increasing by 63 percent and of depression by 26 percent. “The rise of depression and anxiety is very concerning,” coauthor Chris Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, told POLITICO. “We hear a lot of debate as to what the root causes are … but we certainly need to pay attention to try to figure out what’s driving the rise. “ The report shows some overall positive trends: Global mortality rates dropped by 67 percent between 1950 and 2023 and global life expectancy in 2023 was more than 20 years higher compared to 1950. But despite the improvements, the study also highlights “an emerging crisis” of higher death rates in teenagers and young adults in certain regions. In North America and Latin America, for example, deaths among young people increased significantly from 2011 to 2023, mainly due to suicide, drug overdose and high consumption of alcohol. In sub-Saharan Africa, they increased due to infectious diseases and unintentional injuries. In Eastern Europe, the largest increases in mortality were among those aged 15-19 year and 20-24 years, with rates increasing by 54 percent and 40 percent, respectively, between 2011 and 2023. The report also tracks leading causes of mortality worldwide. It found that non-communicable diseases (NCDs) now account for nearly two-thirds of the world’s total mortality and morbidity, led by ischemic heart disease, stroke and diabetes. In particular, in lower-middle and upper-middle income countries there is a “very rapid transition towards non-communicable diseases,” said Murray, driven by factors such as an aging population, slow or no progress on tobacco and air pollution, and rising levels of obesity. In Central Europe and North America, these chronic diseases were primarily driven by an increase in drug use disorders, according to the report. Diabetes and kidney disease also largely contributed to the increase in Central Europe, along with several other regions. “Addressing these trends requires targeted public health interventions, improved health-care access, and socioeconomic policies to mitigate the underlying risk factors,” the report authors urge. The researchers estimate that half of all deaths and disability could be prevented by tackling high levels of blood sugar, overweight and obesity, for example.    The report also points out how conflict has “begun to shift from north Africa and the Middle East to central Europe, eastern Europe, and central Asia,” in recent years due to Russia’s war in Ukraine. This has led to a rise in injury-related deaths. Palestine had the highest mortality rate due to conflict and terrorism of any country in the world. While injury-related deaths caused by specific natural disasters, such as the 2023 earthquake in Turkey and the 2022-23 heatwaves in Europe, are also on the rise. “In central and eastern Europe, heatwaves have been occurring more frequently over the past decade,” the authors said.

The Danish government wants to introduce a ban on several social media platforms for children under the age of 15, as Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced Tuesday. “Mobile phones and social media are stealing our children’s childhood,” she said in her opening speech to the Danish parliament, the Folketing. “We have unleashed a monster,” Frederiksen said, noting that almost all Danish seventh graders, where pupils are typically 13 or 14 years old, own a cellphone. “I hope that you here in the chamber will help tighten the law so that we take better care of our children here in Denmark,” she added. However, Frederiksen did not give further details on what such a ban would entail, nor does a bill on an age limit appear in the government’s legislative program for the upcoming parliamentary year. A 2024 Danish citizen’s initiative, which gathered 50,000 signatures, called for a ban on TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram. However, Frederiksen said parents should be able to give permission for accounts to their children from the age of 13. Frederiksen’s announcement did not come as a total surprise. The Social Democrat has previously expressed support for a social media ban for under-15s. The Danish government is also pushing the EU to require tech firms to verify users’ age online.

Sweden’s health minister has urged the EU to push ahead with social media restrictions for kids while insisting it be treated as a pressing matter. “We’re losing an entire generation to endless scrolling and harmful content, and we need to do something about it,” Minister Jakob Forssmed told POLITICO, adding that social media use among youth is the “most pressing health issue there is.” His comments follow those of European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, who said Europe could adopt a similar approach to Australia. The country is set to ban social media for all users under 16. In her State of the Union address in Strasbourg earlier this week, she pledged to commission a panel of experts to study the impact of the Australian measure and provide recommendations on how Europe should proceed. Forssmed said Europe should move quickly, warning: “We don’t have the time. We need to move forward fast.” Sweden has already compiled research that demonstrates the impact on young people, he said, and the results are clear. “This is a risk for mental health issues. We see it not least when it comes to eating disorders and harmful self-image,” he added. Health authorities in Sweden issued guidelines last year, stating that children under the age of two should not be exposed to any screens and teenagers should have no more than three hours of screen time per day. The government also announced an inquiry into social media use and age restrictions. In Denmark, Minister for Digital Affairs Caroline Stage Olsen also said she would support stronger measures from Brussels and would make it one of the “main priorities” for the Danish presidency of the Council of the EU. “I see three steps on the EU level: mandatory legal requirement for age verification, a ban on harmful and addictive practices for minors and stronger enforcement,” she told POLITICO. Denmark has imposed a ban on smartphones in schools since February, following France’s lead in 2018. A similar ban in Belgium came into effect this month. Five EU countries — Denmark, Greece, France, Italy and Spain — are testing a European Commission age verification app, a new system designed to protect children online. Last year, Ireland’s Department of Health established an online health task force to examine the links between specific types of online activity and physical and mental health harms to children and young people.  It’s also developing a strategic public health response to these harms, which it will bring forward in its final report next month.  Von der Leyen suggested she would wait to decide on EU-wide measures until she had received analysis of the Australian policy. It’s unclear how long European experts will have to do that, given that it comes into force in Australia on Dec. 10, and she wants the panel’s recommendations by year’s end.

PARIS — The French government has turned to national regulator Arcom to complain about a TikTok tan lines trend promoting hazardous sun exposure. A growing number of TikTok videos depict young girls giving tips on how to get halterneck tan lines, or “burn lines,” primarily through sun exposure. “These types of content, which are increasingly widespread, encourage dangerous behaviors that could seriously harm users’ health,” Health Minister Yannick Neuder and Digital Minister Clara Chappaz wrote in a letter to the national watchdog on Friday. The two officials called on Arcom — in coordination with the European Commission, which enforces the new content moderation rules for major platforms like TikTok — to ensure social media companies are meeting their obligations under the Digital Services Act. That includes protecting minors, evaluating and mitigating so-called systemic risks and being transparent about how their algorithms work. Paris urged the regulator to “compile a file to send to the appropriate coordinator and, if necessary, to collaborate with the European Commission services as part of a possible investigation.” This isn’t the first time the government has taken action. Back in April, Chappaz successfully called out TikTok over another trend dubbed “SkinnyTok” — an algorithm-driven content stream that promotes extreme thinness and potentially harmful eating habits. The Commission dialed up scrutiny of the platform, which has been under investigation for potential breaches of the DSA. TikTok ultimately banned the SkinnyTok hashtag amid pressure from regulators. Arcom and TikTok didn’t respond to POLITICO’s request for a comment.