Booker challenges Americans to give up added sugar with him this summer

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is encouraging Americans to join him in giving up added sugar throughout the summer. 

“I have been running now for almost seven months straight, but my weight has been going up and down because you can’t outrun a bag of Oreos, you can’t outrun a late night pint of vegan ice cream,” he said in a video posted to Twitter on Sunday.

“And so I am challenging myself and I want to challenge you to have you want to join me on this experiment,” Booker said. “Life is too short not to try new things.” 

“I want to see what it does to my body and I know what it’s going to do to the scale,” he added.

On the signup page for his challenge, Booker argues that the U.S. is getting poorer by using tax dollars to make sugary and processed foods cheaper than healthier options, noting that unhealthy foods lead to higher health care costs. 

“Stunningly, so many of the foods we eat every day are full of added and ultra-processed sugar, including ketchup, mustard, salad dressings, pasta sauces, drinks, breakfast cereals, breads, chips, dips and so so much more,” it says.