Individual practice with peer evaluation Paola Saravia

1. Individual)practice)with)peer)evaluation)
Project:)Analysis)of)the)official)resolution)to)implement)the)IEPS)tax)to)sugar)beverages)
Paola)Saravia)
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!
1.)What)are)the)arguments)of)the)
article)in)the)Official)diary)(DOF)?)
•! The!high!consumption!of!sweetened!
drinks!is!an!important!factor!in!the!
development!of!obesity!in!Mexico.!
•! A!state!policy!is!necessary!to!achieve!
changes!in!the!populations!healthy!habits!
(nutritional!and!physical).!
•! The!tax!on!sweetened!drinks!will!prevent!
obesity!and!diseases!such!as!
hypertension!and!diabetes.!
2.)What)are)the)consistencies)or)
inconsistencies)that)you)find)in)the)
document?)
•! According!to!the!resolution,!these!entities!
seek!to!improve!the!health!of!mexicans!
with!"protection,!promotion!and!
prevention"!plans,!nevertheless,!the!article!
only!refers!to!the!sugar!beverages!and!the!
imposition!of!a!tax!for!them.!!
•! Arguments!are!not!validated!with!concrete!
evidence.!
•! Obesity!will!not!stop!by!implementing!
taxes!in!these!kinds!of!products.!
•! People!will!not!change!their!nutritional!
habits!and!will!not!stop!buying!sweetened!
beverages!even!if!prices!rise.
3.)What)are)the)bias)or)errors)that)
you)found)in)the)arguments)(bad)
arguments,)fallacies,)omissions,)
false)inferences)and)deceptive)
statistics)?)
•! Generalization:!A!tax!for!sugar!
beverages!will!help!prevent!obesity!and!
chronic!diseases.!
•! Omission:!Statistics!of!obesity!and!
chronic!diseases!in!Mexico!are!missing!in!
the!document.!
•! False)cause)fallacy:!"The!high!
consumption!of!sugar!added!beverages!
contributes!in!a!notorious!manner!to!the!
excess!of!energetic!intakes".!
•! Common)fallacies:!"It!has!been!
considered!that!a!physical!measure!will!
contribute!with!the!mentioned!purposes"/A!
state!policy!can!change!patterns!of!
nutrition!and!physical!activity.!
•! Authority)fallacies:!The!fact!that!an!
important!authority,!such!as!the!Secretaría!
de!Salud!of!Mexico,!affirms!something,!
does!not!mean!that!it´s!true.!

2. !
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4.)Can)conclusions)be)delivered)
from)the)arguments?)
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•! The!document!expresses!premises!that!
do!not!allow!to!reach!a!conclusion,!
whether!they!are!true!or!not.!
•! I!believe!that!we!cannot!make!formal!
conclusions!by!only!reading!this!extract!
and!its!arguments!because!the!arguments!
in!the!document!are!not!backed!by!
scientific!evidence!or!statistics!that!can!
demonstrate!that!the!consumption!of!
sugared!beverages!is!excessive!and!that!
the!amount!of!sugar!in!those!drinks!is!a!
significant!cause!of!obesity!and!other!
diseases!related!to!the!sugar!
consumption.!
!
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5.)Does)the)point)of)view)of)the)
document)is)derived)from)
research?)
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•! In!my!opinion,!the!document!only!presents!
superficially!how!artificially!sweetened!
beverages!contribute!to!obesity.!This!is!an!
important!factor!when!analyzing!the!
problematic!of!overweight!persons!in!
Mexico,!nevertheless,!the!document!does!
not!refer!to!any!scientific!information!that!
proves!it.!
•! The!document!does!not!present!statistics!
about!the!consumption!of!these!kinds!of!
drinks!or!investigations!related!to!the!
nutritional!habits!of!Mexicans.
•! The!document!does!not!cite!academic!
sources.
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6.)In)which)way)are)you)ordering)
your)own)arguments)to)avoid)
being)disperse?)
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•! Dividing!the!text!in!subtopics,!to!analyze!
each!part!of!it.!
•! Making!a!list!of!the!arguments!presented!
in!the!document.!
•! Highlighting!with!different!colors!the!
consistencies!and!inconsistencies,!bias,!
fallacies,!and!false!inferences.!
•! Checking!if!the!premises!are!valid!and!can!
lead!to!a!conclusion.!
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Conclusion:!
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Although!it!is!true!that!excessive!consumption!of!sugary!drinks!can!affect!health!and!be!a!trigger!
for!obesity,!I!consider!that!the!increase!of!a!tax!is!not!enough!to!change!the!nutritional!habits!of!

3. !
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a!population.!For!example,!products!like!alcohol!and!cigarettes!have!high!taxes!and!people!
continue!to!consume!them,!even!knowing!that!they!can!affect!their!health!considerably.!
!
I!consider!that!measures!such!as!this!kind!of!tax!can!contribute!to!the!extent!that!people!can!
begin!to!become!aware!of!the!foods!they!consume,!but!I!think!it!is!not!enough!to!prevent!obesity!
and!diseases!related!with!sugar!consumption!or!to!encourage!a!healthy!lifestyle!that!ends!with!
such!problems.!
!
What! I! think! is! necessary! is! that! the! Mexican! Secretaría! de! Salud! create! public! spaces! to!
promote!exercise.!For!example,!in!my!city,!Bogotá,!every!Sunday!the!main!avenues!are!closed!
to!cars,!in!order!to!allow!people!to!go!out!on!their!bicycles,!walk!or!run.!There!are!also!aerobics!
and!dance!stations!and!hydration!points.!!
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On! the! other! hand,! the! Secretaría! de! Salud! of! Mexico! could! implement! food! improvement!
programs!in!schools!in!order!to!reduce!the!consumption!of!sugar,!saturated!fats!and!products!
that!do!not!provide!nutrients!to!the!body!and!that!can!lead!to!obesity.
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