Parents are trying to raise healthy kids and we need health organizations to be our allies instead of selling us out. That was the point I tried to make when New York Times reporter Stephanie Strom recently interviewed me for her article about the new “Kids Eat Right” label, from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), which … Continue reading
The big announcement from the recent Partnership for a Healthier America Summit was a marketing campaign for fruits and vegetables called “FNV.” It was celebrated by First Lady Michelle Obama, who enlisted the help of celebrities to promote it. It also received support from children’s health advocates including Bettina Siegel of The Lunch Tray, who wrote, “Celebrities … Continue reading
Here is my letter to the editor about McDonald’s that was published in the Washington Post: In her March 3 op-ed column, “The tarnished arches,” Catherine Rampell brought much-needed attention to the role of McDonald’s as a bad corporate actor. The corporation also faces criticism for its marketing to children. I am among the many parents … Continue reading
Plastered on the PlayPlace window of my local McDonald’s is a giant Coca-Cola decal. McDonald’s uses these play areas to attract families with children to their restaurants while also using them as a way to market soda. This highlights their duplicitous approach to public health efforts. The fast food chain was lauded in the fall of 2013 for agreeing to phase … Continue reading
My latest piece for Beyond Chron is about last night’s junk food Super Bowl ads. Coca-Cola and McDonald’s are two companies with slipping sales who are looking for Super Bowl advertising wins on Sunday in order to turn things around. Both of these companies aggressively market products that are harmful to health and use sports … Continue reading
Fruit snacks are such a fraud. Passing off sugary candy as snacks for kids? As Bridgette Kidd, MPH, RD, LD put it: Fruit snacks are the epitome of a healthwashed product. That’s because packaging claims deliberately mislead consumers about the nutritional value of the product. Study author Clare Hughes described the problem this way: Our … Continue reading
Yesterday, a national panel of experts convened by Healthy Eating Research (HER), a program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, released Recommendations for Responsible Food Marketing to Children. Marion Nestle had a blunt response to the report’s recommendations aimed at the food industry’s voluntary guidelines for what and how junk foods can be marketed to kids: … Continue reading
