Creation and marketing of junk food

[PamNY]

I really don't like the term "junk food" but couldn't think of anything better.

This magazine-length NY Times article is worth reading:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/magazine/the-extraordinary-science-of-junk-food.html?pagewanted=all

[Melalvai]

That was interesting. With the tobacco legislation, our culture is changing, but it takes time & persistence. I'm not surprised that the junk food companies just aren't there yet. It gets me when people whine about "whatever happened to individual responsibility?" like we should let people to the mercies of industry advertising and expect them not to succumb when tons of resources are poured in to discover what kind of advertising will get them. Whatever happened to individual responsibility at the level of CEOs? I'm not saying they're the bad guys but they are no stronger against the temptation of wealth than we are against their advertising.

I thought it was funny that the daughter of the CEO of Lunchables never feeds Lunchables to her own kids.

[lph]

It gets me when people whine about "whatever happened to individual responsibility?" like we should let people to the mercies of industry advertising and expect them not to succumb when tons of resources are poured in to discover what kind of advertising will get them.

I agree. Expecting people to read the fine print and make well-thought-out, rational decisions every time they pick up a package of something that is specifically designed to play on preconceived ideas and be as addictive as possible is just not fair. Especially when it comes to junk food packaged to sell as real food, not as a snack.

Very interesting article, PamNY, thanks.

[Eden]

I thought it was funny that the daughter of the CEO of Lunchables never feeds Lunchables to her own kids.

I figured that her family probably has someone there all the time to cook for them..... she probably never even goes to the grocery store, much less resorts to something like a Lunchable to feed her kids because she's too busy to pack a lunch....

[PamNY]

Author of the piece answers a few questions:

http://6thfloor.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/25/behind-the-cover-story-michael-moss-on-addictive-foods-and-what-he-eats-for-breakfast/

[DebSP]

The Brutally Honest Coca-Cola Commercial You'll Never See On The Air http://www.upworthy.com/the-brutally-honest-coca-cola-commercial-youll-never-see-on-the-air?g=2&c=upw1

Some one at work posted this fake commercial. Fake but with a lot of truth to it!

[DebSP]

One thing I wanted to add. I understand the time commitment and not eating processed foods. I am not sure I could have managed it when my children were younger but I sure wish I had tried. I feel like I have passed on some horrible eating habits to two of the people in the world that I care most about. My daughter is 27 now and she is living with me and is tweaking her diet to cut back on processed foods now which is great! Unfortunately my son is away at uni and I can't figure out how to help him change his habits. I buy most of his food so I try to include some better choices for him and he does cook his own dinner almost every day. But breakfast and lunch are meals that he needs to be quick and easy so he resorts to cereals and bagels and soups etc. Maybe not the worst but still processed and high in sodium. But I will keep talking about better nutrition and maybe eventually he will choose carefully!

[Melalvai]

The coke commercial...made me want a coke. :P
I liked learning about "libertarian paternalism (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226172506.htm)"-- influence behavior while preserving choice. It's something McDonald's discovered decades ago. If you say "You want fries with that?" everyone will agree. So they trained cafeteria workers to say "Do you want an apple with that?" and increased 1) the amount of apples taken, 2) the number of apples eaten, and 3) the amount of each apple eaten. (It was fruit, not just apples.)

Presumably increasing the amount of apples eaten decreases the amount of junk food eaten. But even if it doesn't, I believe--contrary to what many people believe--the junk food really is less unhealthy if it is eaten with something healthy. Not that they cancel each other out exactly. But the glycemic index is a factor of all the food, and the healthy food pulls the GI down while the junk food pulls it up. Attenuating the insulin surges & crashes is at least as important--if not more important-- than focusing solely on the absolute number of calories consumed.

[OakLeaf]

More: http://www.democracynow.org/2013/3/1/pandoras_lunchbox_pulling_back_the_curtain?autostart=true

"Hot Coffee" indeed. Remember how these ideas were ridiculed - without anyone bothering to look up the evidence - when fast food companies were sued?