That's Fit

In the San Francisco Bay Area, residents are being treated to a billboard-sized healthy message: "Beat Obesity with a Stick," says the ad, atop a background of celery sticks. Sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, the mega-corp and HMO to many, it's raising more than a few eyebrows.



Sure, we can all accept that obesity is an issue of critical importance -- the health of a nation is at stake here, after all. But the ad gives off a very distinct impression: That obese people don't eat celery, and that a few sticks can solve the problem.

What do you think of this ad? It's clever, yes, but does it cross the line?

Kristen told us about the recently-launched high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) ad campaign. By now, you've probably seen the commercials. The ads bother me to no end. Not only because they imply that HFCS is natural ("it's made from corn") but because of the disturbing way the people are portrayed.

The people who are concerned about HFCS in the commercials come off rude, condescending, and uninformed. Seriously. Would you actually tell a friend that you don't think they care what they feed their kids? On the other hand, the people who think HFCS is fine are knowledgeable and polite. Personally, I think the commercials poke fun at people who are health-conscious and care about what they put in their bodies.

CBS News launched an investigation and found that three of the six studies supporting the Corn Refiners Association's claim that HFCS is no different than sugar were funded by organizations that stand to profit from HFCS acceptance. It's not unusual for parties with a vested interest to fund studies, but it does give reason to raise a questioning eyebrow.

[via FitSugar]

Over the in UK, rules were recently placed on child-targeted advertising, prohibiting them from running junk food ads during popular kids programming. But according to recent reports from the BBC, the rules are not working. The reason? They're not strict enough. In fact, it turns out that only four of the top 20 children's shows are required to adhere to these rules. So some shows, like The Simpsons, are not allowed to run junk food ads during commercial breaks, while other like Beat the Star (which attracts half a million children!) can.

However, it's still estimated that the amount of junk food ads that children see on British TV has been reduced by around 50%. It's a start, but I'm still hoping for 100%.

What do you think about kid-targeted advertising? Is it a parent's responsibility to restrict what their kids see on TV? Or should advertising companies back off and stop aiming at impressionable minds?

(via Calorie Lab)

Think about it: What form of technology has made the single biggest impact in the lives of children over the past 100 years? Computers have revolutionized the world, but I suspect television has made the biggest impact on young people, particularly because they are a captive audience subjected to clever and manipulative advertising that is targeted specifically at them. As such, it's believed that TV advertising is one of the top causes of ever-rising childhood obesity.

This revelation has caused Mark Scott, the Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corp, to push back against kid-targeted advertising, and he's calling for a commercial-free Children's channel to be developed down under.

If you had what you considered to be a pretty perfect body, would you -- or do you -- flaunt it, show it off, maybe even allow it to be photographed for all to see? David Beckham would. And he did, when he posed in his underwear for Emporio Armani billboards in December.

People everywhere cheered upon seeing Beckham's bod. But not mom.

"When the photos came out, she was the first one to call me and say, 'What are you doing?'" say's the 32-year-old. "I had to try and explain it to her and it didn't go down that well."

So would you do it? Would your mom approve?

Normally I don't think that marketing products to children is very honest or ethical. However, I don't have a problem with Dove's latest ad, which is aimed squarely at young girls. The commercial, which you can see at ParentDish in this post by Jonathon Morgan, is the second by the company to bring attention to the sort of (mis)information we are fed by the beauty industry.

The first ad was the one that began with a regular young woman and then fast-forwarded to the same girl transformed into a beauty queen with the many steps necessary to change her look shown in between. The new commercial, titled Onslaught, begins with a young girl and then displays a barrage of fashion and beauty images that promote a thinner, prettier and more perfect ideal. The video ends with a message urging parents to talk to their young daughters before the beauty industry does.

As this piece mentions, the videos are part of Dove's campaign to raise awareness about the industry and more importantly, to raise women's self-esteem. I've seen the ad and I think it's great. What do you think about the video and the campaign?

It seems like anorexic models are used in ads all the time. But this ad from Italian Designer Nolita is different -- it's creator purposely used a severely anorexic model in the hopes of bringing awareness to the disease. The showcasing of this ad coincides with Milan's Fashion Week, where models are under scrutiny for being too thin.To see the ad, click here.

The model, 23-year-old Isabelle Caro, weighs 68 lbs, and her drastically low weight is apparent from the ad -- her bones protrude quite profoundly, and she looks extremely emaciated and ill. I think Caro is brave for showcasing her body, which she calls 'repulsive', but I sincerely hope that she can get help for the disease, which she's struggled with for 15years.

What do you think of the ad?

Granted, if you're reading this, you probably don't live in Spain (where the ad originated), but it still makes a great point about how easy it is to donate blood.

It will literally only take moments out of your day, and will be an enormous help to those in need. As noted by the American Red Cross: "We all expect blood to be there for us, but barely a fraction of those who can give do. Yet sooner or later, virtually all of us will face a time of great vulnerability in which we will need blood. And that time is all too often unexpected."

To find out if you're eligible to give blood, go here, and to find a place to donate in your area, go here.

Nickelodeon is the latest to come under fire in the battle against childhood obesity. A recent study showed that more than 80% of the foods and snacks advertised on the network are unhealthy -- including products tied to popular characters like SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer. As a result (and in light of the growing childhood obesity problem), a nutrition advocacy group is asking Nickelodeon to make some changes -- saying they could advertise less junk food and more toys or games.

People for Nickelodeon insist that they have been and remain focused on "balanced messaging," and that currently 10% of the network's airtime is devoted to promoting healthy food choices like fruits and vegetables. They say they will continue to work with advertisers to encourage healthy lifestyle choices for kids.

Sounds like nothing is changing anytime soon.