FACT: According to the latest statistics nearly 40 percent of U.S. adults are obese. Another 30 percent are overweight and 8 percent are severely obese. Obesity is a major health issue associated with numerous diseases, specifically an increased risk of cancer, coronary artery disease, Type 2 diabetes, stroke, and cardiovascular disease. Obesity significantly increases the risk of early mortality. Seventeen percent of our youth ages 10-17 are obese, a number which translates to 14.7 million children and adolescents.
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How many of you are familiar with the name Alexander Woollcott? Mr. Woollcott was a loved and hated drama critic for The New Yorker magazine. He died in 1943, and my only purpose in referencing him is so I can pilfer one of his famous quotes: "All the things I really like to do are illegal, immoral or fattening." With the overindulgence of the holidays about to descend on our tongues and torsos, attention should be centered on the problem of obesity in America.
Travel with me back in time to the 1980s and First Lady Nancy Reagan's attempt to fight the war on drugs. Out of that failed campaign came the famous advertising slogan, "Just Say No," which was eventually hijacked to bring awareness to the dangers of violence, premarital sex and other immoral, illegal and… nope, not fattening, because fattening was not an issue in the '80s, at least, not like it is today.
According to innumerable surveys and our own bathroom mirrors, America is a nation of obese couch potatoes. I do not know how much money was spent on this research, but whatever the amount, it was too much. Even the casual observer cannot help but notice the lines that wind around fast food restaurants almost 24 hours a day, especially when we are one of the people waiting in those lines.
Not only are men bulging at the waistline of their Sansabelt* slacks and women popping the seams of their Apple Bottom** jeans, kids today resemble the Cosby character Fat Albert (1970s) with alarming regularity. Why? As a nation, we have adopted Woollcott's hedonistic philosophy and ignored Mrs. Reagan's sensible guidance. However, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), located in Washington, D.C., sees the problem differently.
Experts at CSPI claimed that it was not a diet of unhealthy, fat laden food that made kids fat. The Center believed that the toys in a McDonald's Happy Meal were the culprit. In the early 2000s, the CSPI threatened to file a lawsuit against McDonald's, stating that the company "… unfairly and deceptively" promoted its food by luring children with cheap plastic movie-themed promotional items. The organization also targeted DreamWorks and Nestle USA. DreamWorks came under attack for partnering with Snyder’s by displaying characters from the animated feature Madagascar 3 on their packaging. Nestle offered Crunch candy bars sporting the Girl Scouts logo. (I cannot remember ever seeing a severely overweight Girl Scout although their cookies have lined cupboard shelves since 1928.)
The CSPI claiming that advertising aimed at children is unfair is like saying that water is wet, but to claim that McDonald's or any other company’s ad campaigns are deceptive is ridiculous. McDonald’s makes no bones about the fact that they want to sell lots of burgers and fries. Their advertising is in your face blatant. Would you expect anything different from a corporation that runs a worldwide management training center called Hamburger University? As for DreamWorks and Nestle… they are not the guardians of good health. Their sole purpose is to Sell! Sell! Sell!
When these law suits were filed, the CSPI website encouraged parents to write to DreamWorks and Nestle and even offered sample letters with which to express outrage. The DreamWorks letter began this way: “I'm disappointed by the use of Madagascar 3 characters to market nutrition-poor products…” The Nestle letter was similar in wording: “I'm disappointed by Nestlé's decision to market candy bars using the Girl Scouts’ name and logo.”
Experts in the field of child rearing believe that campaigns such as those waged by CSPI are further indications that parents have abdicated their responsibilities, preferring instead to point the finger of blame at corporate America.
In 2010, CSPI's Stephen Gardner advised McDonald's executives that their "... marketing causes them (children) to nag their parents to bring them to McDonald's."
Most parents will tell you with complete assurance that nagging is what kids do best. Moms and dads would be wise to put a stop to the begging and pleading by giving voice to Mrs. Reagan’s wise words and "Just Say No!"
Now, who took my Thin Mint cookies?
*Sansabelt pants ceased production in the early 1990s. Overweight men everywhere mourned. Production began again in 2019.
**Apply Bottom is a fashion brand intended for women with full hips.
Donna Carbone is the Executive Director/Playwright in Residence at the Palm Beach Institute for the Entertainment Arts. Please visit PBIEA at: pbinstituteforentertainmentarts.com