Thomas Bye
To scare you a little here are some quick facts:
To scare you a little here are some quick facts:
- 17% of children age two to nineteen are obese
- 36.5% of adults are obese
- Obesity costs the health care system approximately $147 billion dollars
Therefore,
it is incredibly important to be healthy if we want to live long active lives!
There are two main factors in being healthy, exercise and diet. The American
College of Sports Medicine has done a lot of research on the topic and
concluded diet is the priority factor. The most successful weight loss is with
a smart healthy diet rather than an overabundance of exercise.
Many
governments, institutions, and businesses have put together various
advertisements to curve our appetites, using fear appeals and positive emotions.
Whether the message is for healthy or unhealthy diets they influence our everyday
decisions.
A popular tactic is to use fear appeals, comparing food choice with something miserable happening to us or a loved one or with an item we associate to have negative consequences.
These two ads use cigarettes to portray
the negative effects eating fast food and sugary treats have on the human body.
This ad uses a broken doll to show the
importance of having milk (calcium and vitamin D) in our diets to prevent injury
to our teeth and bones.
It
is interesting and smart on marketer’s parts that many or all of the
advertisements for unhealthy food use positive emotions with the food.
These illustrations promote the possible health benefits like pep and vigor of these secretly unhealthy foods. Moderation should be used when eating these foods, even if the claims are good.
I like to think
as Michael Pollan does from his
book In Defense of Food, fruits
and vegetables don’t need to boast about their amazing nutrients and health
benefits like canned and bagged processed foods because they are natural and we
have been eating them for centuries.
But here is one for the mangos ;)
Answer: Eat food, not too much, mostly
plants ~ Michael Pollan
If your more interested in his book and don’t like reading there is a movie on PBS.
If your more interested in his book and don’t like reading there is a movie on PBS.
Works Cited:
(2018). Retrieved 25 February 2018, from http://adsarchive.com/donut-cigarette/
FACT CHECK: Does a Vintage Advertisement Show Boy Eating a Stick of Butter?. (2018). Snopes.com. Retrieved 25 February 2018, from https://www.snopes.com/boy-eating-butter-ad/
Overweight & Obesity | CDC. (2018). Cdc.gov. Retrieved 25 February 2018, from https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/
Soccer With A Milk Ad Equals Success? | Best Ad Advertising. (2018). Bestad.org. Retrieved 25 February 2018, from http://www.bestad.org/soccer-with-a-milk-ad-equals-success/
‘Vitamin Donuts’ Poster by FORESTKAT. (2018). Redbubble. Retrieved 25 February 2018, from https://www.redbubble.com/people/forestkat/works/22269238-vitamin-donuts?p=poster
Wine, L., Norris, L., & Lauren, A. (2018). The Benefits of Mangos for Runners. This Runner's Recipes. Retrieved 25 February 2018, from http://www.thisrunnersrecipes.com/benefits-of-mangos-for-runners/
Great post! Obesity comes with so many health issues; in some of my upper level, more in-depth health classes this semester I've learned that obesity is linked to nearly every type of cancer and insulin resistance is just now being connected to Alzheimer's disease. Considering these are health problems that occur later on in life and outcomes of obesity can take years to manifest, people don't tend to think it's that big of a deal "right now."
ReplyDeleteI also have an issue with the body-positive movement (in terms of weight). While it's great to be happy with yourself and not feel judged by others, it seems like it's telling people it's okay to be overweight. I actually just shadowed a PA today and we consulted on a morbidly obese patient, and I guess one of the first protocols now is to just do bariatric surgery instead of consulting on diet and exercise because if that doesn't work (and most of the time it doesn't) people are already at the point of having high blood pressure and cholesterol and it's better to just have surgery before those issues progress. Crazy.
Unfortunately however, eating right and exercising is a lot easier said than done for a lot of people.
I totally agree that it is easier said than done. I also think it starts with parents and who you are raised by to ingrain healthy habits, for example most people brush their teeth 1 or 2 times a day and I learned that from my mom like my eating. Change is hard and It comes with society too. If we look at France they eat very rich foods but the way they eat them it takes over an hour to eat a meal and they enjoy the food and compare it to Americans who are always in a rush.
DeleteAnother thing to look at would be stress for a lot of people because it does affect food choices and gut bacteria! but thats another story :)
Great post! I liked how you started off your post with scary statistics as it tied into the theme of using scare tactics in the advertisements you included. Overall, I really enjoyed your topic as it is something that is extremely important in today’s society. I think that in contrast to the ads you showed, it is interesting to consider the types of advertisements we see for unhealthy fast food chains and the like. For example, McDonalds focuses on associating their food with happiness. Their ads often contain images of people having a good time and enjoying their foods. Their slogan “I’m loving it” also works with this theme and their logo is often manipulated to look like a smiley face. When companies like McDonalds continue to be successful despite the campaigns to inform people about the consequences of choosing an unhealthy lifestyle, it makes me wonder which form of advertising is more powerful. Or is decision making about food related to something else entirely- like convenience or laziness when it comes to making a lifestyle change?
ReplyDeleteRegardless, I think that the spreading of knowledge about this topic is essential if we want to see change. Whether it is through advertising or books like In Defense of Food, people need to be informed if we are going to expect them to make informed decisions. I think it will be interesting to see how our country continues to tackle this topic over time.
Thanks for the great comment! and like I said to Cassie, it is partly societal. The fact we are Americans in high stress fast environments there isn't time to enjoy food and become full or relax during the day to destress. We can look into the gut brain connection that helps regulates our resting metabolic rate and how being happy helps it but the foods we choose effect it as well.
DeleteI do like how you noticed McDs advertisement strategy and it works for them and many others. Maybe healthy food could advertise the same way! And like you said, information spreading is the first big part!
I really like this post, especially because I am extremely interested in nutrition. I really like how you pointed out that unhealthy foods almost always have some sort of health claim labeled on them. This is to persuade people to buy the product, making them think that what they are buying is healthy for them. When in reality, if the product has a health claim in the first place, it probably is in a package or a box and we shouldn't be eating it anyways. Like you said, mangoes (or any fruits and vegetables) don't have health claims because they don't need them. They are whole foods and these are the foods we should be buying in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important to spread info about nutrition. Reading the book In Defense of Food is a great place to start to learn about what we should and should not be eating. There are so many diets out there and it confuses people on what is good for their bodies. In general, almost every diet follows the same idea that we should not be eating processed foods and should be eating more whole foods.
It sounds like you read in defense of food ;) I totally agree spreading info is important and the other thing I like to enforce is anyone can!
DeleteHave you looked into the top 5 diets by USA Today? there are similarities in the unprocessed food but I also find it interesting how some push high fat verse low fat. But the important part for all of them is real food not processed. I am currently cooking from a vegan athlete book and they really push nutrient density.
For example an avacado has a lot of from but also a lot of nutrients, this is good. The oil however is bad because it is only the calories and none of the nutrients
I like that you chose to write about this topic because obesity and nutrition are a major topic in American society today. It is obvious that obesity is becoming a serious problem in the United States, so I think advertisers take advantage of the fact. By using scare tactics to appeal to people's emotions, I think it really grabs people's attention because I think often times people mindlessly eat food without realizing what they are actually eating. When advertisers appeal to people's emotions regarding food and nutrition, I believe that people are more motivated to watch the foods they eat and put into their bodies because the ads made them aware of the potential effects of eating poorly too often.
ReplyDeleteThanks, and I do believe as well advertisers take advantage of our emotions to make us think about what we eat. What do think this does to restaurant owners? They want to make good food not necessarily healthy food always.
DeleteI read an article recently that predicts that 70% of millennials will be obese by middle age. This would make us the fattest generation IN HISTORY. This frightens me, because it seems like there is a trend toward health and fitness, but it isn't predicted to have many benefits in the long run. It's disgusting how many people are dying from obesity. In most cases, it is completely preventable. I have seen Michael Pollan's movie and I have read the book and I think his advice is really beneficial and I would recommend both of them to anybody, especially those trying to turn around their life and health.
ReplyDeleteFor sure! Pollan's words will help our generations and others move toward healthier lives. As a generation a lot of things are becoming automatic and sedentary so the push is going to be eating FOOD not quick meals/snacks. Hopefully the stat you read isn't true, I would challenge it because the CDC has 35% of adults obese and only 20% under 19 obese, which are promising for a better direction :)
DeleteThis topic is very interesting to me - I am a post-op diabetic (I don't fit within the category of Type 1 or 2 diabetes) but my diet is something that I have to be extremely cautious with and it's scary to think about the tactics that food companies use to persuade consumers to purchase their products. I often catch myself walking through the grocery store and picking up packages of processed food, reading the health claims listed on the labels and even in some ways convincing myself that they could be true.
ReplyDeleteI have seen Michael Pollan's documentary, In Defense of Food and it was somewhat of a reality check for me - in terms of re-evaluating my diet and what's healthy and important for my body especially considering the fact that I do have diabetes. It is so important for people to recognize that exercise is not the soul solution for staying healthy - and I'm glad you mention this in your post! Within the world of diabetes for example, there is a tremendous lack of knowledge on the patient side of things as far as what lifestyle changes need to be made to maintain one's health and to manage one's diabetes - a lot of people believe that they just have to exercise a little bit more and cut back on the carbs (processed sugars etc.), but it's more than that, it needs to be more about eating as 'naturally' as you can as well as other factors such as exercise.
Even for people who aren't as interested in nutrition and health topics in general, I would recommend watching Pollan's documentary!
Thanks for the backing on pollens documentary! its also easier than a book ;) I like your emphasis on nutrition over exercise but still keeping exercise in play because that is a key way to heart health. As a diabetic, do you think this influences your friends eating and health habits because you take such good thought into what happened to your body that they may as well or is it harder to maintain your lifestyle because of all the fun persuasion others influence you with? I ask because I know my diabetic girlfriend has had a positive impact on my eating and how many different types of meals I eat now.
DeleteI am happy you chose nutrition as your topic as it has always interested me, and I feel that I have a genuine appreciation for making sure I eat well. That being said, I see a lot of people talking about how educating people is the key to success, and while I definitely can agree that it seems a lack of knowledge leads to poor health choices, I also think that even with an increase in knowledge, we still need to find a way to make people genuinely care.
ReplyDeleteThere are plenty of people out there who know that they need to eat better, and know that what they put into their bodies is not necessarily good for them, but continue to eat poorly anyways. Even with the statistics, even with the numbers and data, people know and still eat poorly. The people who watch their diet carefully seem to have a reason for eating well, whether it's for athletic performance, aesthetic purposes, or just genuinely wanted to feel and perform to the best of their abilities. Do you think that simply educating people on diet is enough to make them change their diet, or do you think there is a better way to send this message in a way that will make it hit home with individuals in such a way that they will actually care about it? Not everyone shares your passion for eating well and being healthy, some people seem content to sit around and eat ice cream all day because it tastes good even though they know it's not the healthiest option. How can we portray this issue in a way that is important to those individuals? Otherwise, it seems like a doctor saying you're obese is not enough to get them to change their ways. Do you think this is solely due to how they were raised, like you replied in a previous comment? Or is it just inherently a part of some people not to care?
Maybe the answer is just to get them all to watch this documentary as a start!
You bring up some good points Ben. I think the issue is solved for most people when doc says you're going to die from this soon or not see your grandkids. And for some they still don't care.
DeleteI stand that it is learned to eat poorly and choose bad/quick foods not inherent. Using the grocery store as an example, the foods we gravitate toward are those advertised, if none where, I would hope people would choose less of them. Additionally, the foods you are fed growing up are the ones you will choose as an adult! It comes to teaching parents and sometimes children to grab the correct foods at a young age. It would be interesting to compare the percent of obese adults and what they ate as children to non obese and what they ate as children. However, statistics dont seem to be doing the job right now ;)
Nice post, Tom! In Defense of Food was a great read, and I am glad to see that we share similar standpoints on the topic. As mentioned in previous comments, it has been said that education on a proper diet will help people understand what they need to eat and what they need to stay away from. But, obesity is still on the rise and much more specifically in adolescents. Do you think that there should be more strict dietary concerns in schools or something like that with less sugary unhealthy options as a means to try and combat the rise? Also, as Pollen said, usually the unhealthy food is the "loudest" in the super markets, referring to louder colors, packing, stickers, etc. How would you suggest that we try to convey that the best foods are usually the "quieter" ones, the ones on the outer edges of the supermarkets, where the fresh meats and fishes, and the fruits and veggies are usually located.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think schools should be more strict on what is served to students at them. In high school, I was published as a letter to the editor in the star tribune because I learned schools were counting pizza as a vegetable because of the tomato sauce... It seems absurd. I do like how schools have been thinking into the psychology of choice and teaching kids what to choose or forcing them to choose certain items by placing them first in line and at the register!
DeleteI really enjoyed your blog post and found it very informative. It's interesting to see how many different ads there are for eating healthier and how unique all the ads are, but they all really grasp your attention. This post makes me want to eat healthier and live a healthier life style. Would you say you live a healthy life even though you are at college and that makes things harder?
ReplyDeleteIm glad you are pushing toward a healthier life :) College was very difficult as a freshman because of the options I was handed but as I moved off campus and alone now, I have all the space to cook and eat as a please and make high nutrient dense foods. Let me know if you want any recipes, I have a tasty veggie hogie. Further, the ads above mainly use harsh images like cigarettes to get our attention, as common knowledge is they will give us cancer, or the soccer one, co one wants their child to be injured because of what a parent has fed them. I think the institutions did a wonderful job!
DeleteThis post was really interesting to read! As someone who comes from a family of diabetics it is honestly terrifying to see how common obesity is in todays generation. I know I try to only eat foods that contain ingredients I know. Although for those of us who live in the dorms definitely have a harder time finding fresh and healthy food choices with minimal preservatives and added chemicals. Which also brings to my attention the fact that people would rather have convenient food with unknown additives instead of spend the time and extra money to prepare their own food.
ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate that people are choosing the fast option. I think part of it is not preparing, healthy can be fast if prepared. Making a dinner with extras leaves fast healthier options. I also think people may say expensive because of the cost of organic. The great thing is healthy doesn't mean only organic! It's like you said food you know and your grandmother knows :) I feel companies should emphasize few ingredients over non-GMO, etc.
DeleteIt is also unfortunate for dorm dwellers and that comes onto the university and the choices they deem most important, and sometimes food is not a priority.
I feel like we need to regulate the food industry more, because engineering food to be addictive is immoral, and it should be illegal. The human body craves energy rich food, and our bodies want it every chance it can. We've come a long way from the stone age, and now more than ever food is produced cheaply and efficiently. This is both a blessing and a curse for us, as we eat more than ever now because it is so available. The sad part is is that the available foods are the ones that are worse for us. When it costs 1 dollar for a McChicken at Mcdonalds, and chicken salad costs $5, its hard to turn down the cheaper, arguably tastier option. I think that it's imperative that we educate American children on proper diet and exercise, in order to stop obesity before it starts.
ReplyDeleteTo my knowledge the food industry is well regulated and sugar is not addictive to us unless it is only offered for small periods of time every day. We have all day to consume whatever we choose and therefore it is not classified as an addiction. I do understand how irresistible foods can be and addiction can describe that. I like the idea of regulation and we have shown that a little. New York for example is required to post how many calories are in something at a restaurant so customers have a more informed choice! So hope is not lost! What actions do you take on a daily or weekly bases to help others be more healthy?
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