Nanny State 3

I won’t even go into my usual rant about how liberals think they are smarter than you, and need to tell you what you should and shouldn’t do. What is good for you, and what isn’t. How they want to regulate and control our everyday lives through big government and ,ooops, sorry, I cant help myself.

Anyway, here is an article about something else they are now going after, caffeine. It’s only a matter of time before we face a caffeine tax. From newsday.com:

How much caffeine? Lawmaker asks labels

A city councilman who admits he drinks several cups of coffee a day said he will introduce a resolution tomorrow to pressure the federal government to require that food and beverages carry labels revealing the amount of caffeine.

The councilman, Simcha Felder (D-Brooklyn), said he became aware of the need for more information about caffeine content on food products last year when his wife urged their daughter to keep track of how much caffeine she was consuming from all products during pregnancy.
“She said, ‘You don’t accomplish much as an elected official. Maybe you can do something about this,'” the councilman recalled yesterday with a chuckle. “And I don’t argue with her.”

Felder said he knows the City Council has no authority to force companies to provide the information on their products, but he wanted to put the city’s voice behind a movement to urge the Food and Drug Administration to require companies to provide information on caffeine quantities.

Scientists say consuming more than about 400 milligrams of caffeine a day can cause anxiety, sleeplessness, headaches, nausea and even heart problems. A 12-ounce cola typically has 30 to 55 milligrams of caffeine. A 7-ounce cup of coffee can have 65 to 135 milligrams.

The councilman said it was important for pregnant women and parents to know how much caffeine they and their children were consuming from products including coffee, chocolate, soft drinks, yogurt and ice cream.

“I drink three or four cups of coffee a day,” Felder said. “When I don’t have it, I do get a headache. It’s certainly important for people to know there is caffeine in products.”

The FDA requires that caffeine be included in the list of food product ingredients, but it does not require that the quantity be specified. The agency said in a 1981 advisory that pregnant women should avoid caffeine or use it only sparingly.

Telephone and e-mail messages for comment left with the FDA in Washington, D.C., were not immediately returned yesterday.