Dentist Jonathan Shenkin wants Maine to ban buying soda with food stamps because he feels that the sugar is bad for our health.

I agree that drinking soda is bad for us. The problem with banning it from being purchased with food stamps is that if you start with soda or other beverages of choice, you will then move on to cookies, cakes, doughnuts or any other bakery item that one can purchase with food stamps. If that happens, then birthday parties for the children will not take place.

You can blame bad dental health on drinking soda, but I don’t really believe that soda is more to blame than eating sugary foods.

What Shenkin suggests is to have the state put everyone in the program on a forced diet. I agree that some food items are bad for us, but let us be the judge of what we want.

Do I buy soda with my food stamps? Yes I do. But I don’t buy a lot of soda. I do get the food I need and only then buy soda if I can. Pretty soon all those on the program will receive a list of what foods we are allowed to buy.

Paul Van Opdurp

Caribou