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Cancer Research UK Controversial Ads - Thoughts?

tinkerbellang83
tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
Some of you may have seen there's been a big hubbub the last week or so about CRUK's latest ad campaign targeting obesity.

https://news.sky.com/story/cancer-research-advert-criticised-for-comparing-smoking-to-obesity-11754904

Those of you who haven't seen/heard, they are using a mock-up of a cigarette packet to indicate that obesity is becoming more of a problem than smoking in relation to cancer, using ads like below.
2qnymlc1uyse.png

The actual main focus of their campaign is to have food ads that target children withdrawn from TV/Social Media, in the hope that the reduction in advertising may help reduce obesity in children, in the same way tackling cigarette advertising has helped reduce the numbers of people smoking.
https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-us/we-develop-policy/our-policy-on-preventing-cancer/our-policy-on-obesity-and-diet-1

They have received quite a backlash from people claiming that it's fat-shaming.

Personally, I don't think it is fat-shaming - it's not calling out people for being fat, their campaign is targeting manufacturers and governments to intervene and help people improve their health. I do think they could have highlighted their aim better (the link to the website is tiny).

I also think that by the controversial nature of the ad, it has gotten people talking about it and is helping raise awareness of the lack of support for people struggling with their weight, particularly when we look at underlying causes of obesity, for a lot of people it's not as straightforward as eat less, move more because there are underlying issues that need to be dealt with - disordered relationship with food, anxiety, depression, etc; lack of education on the science of weight management and the BS that the diet industry spreads to keep people perpetually overweight, so they can keep lining their pockets.

At the same time, I have seen some awful responses online (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook) from people on both sides of the fence, so I can certainly understand why some people are so upset by the campaign.

What are your thoughts? Please keep it respectful!




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Replies

  • LINIA
    LINIA Posts: 1,159 Member
    No, had not been aware of the ads...thanks for bringing them to our attention. My entire family is overweight with some members actually obese.
    Nothing will help and that is true for a majority of ppl, we can not shame, embarrass or fight the advertising industry. Sorry this sounds so pessimistic but we have almost all (percentage wise) lost our way.
  • 6raham
    6raham Posts: 147 Member
    6raham wrote: »
    Personally I think the day we can purchase vegetables cheaper than we can buy fast food, educate kids effectively in school on nutrition and food preparation make sport / physical education a daily event in school is the day we have a positive impact on obesity numbers. Not just a picture on a bus stop...

    It's a fair point you make, but do you think the uproar the picture on a bus stop has caused might highlight more the needs for these things to the people who are responsible for ensuring this education is happening and result in more people being aware of the campaign to tackle obesity, particularly in children?

    Cancer Research's policy on obesity does state they are on several steering groups/forum in England, Scotland & Wales that are working with the government to tackle obesity and have encouraged people to also contact their MP to support the ban on daytime fast food/junk food ads.

    I do also think that the cost of fresh fruit and vegetables is not really as much of an issue as people think. Take Aldi for instance, they have their Super 6 running all year round, this week there are courgettes, aubergines, sugar snap peas, peaches, melon and romaine lettuce. Tesco had the wonky veg range. Then you can get bags of frozen veg relatively cheap too and these will often create far more meals than the cost of one item of fast food.

    In my opinion, in the UK, the reason people buy more fast food than fresh is that it's more convenient rather than it being cheaper. Much easier to bang some stuff in the oven and microwave, than cook something from scratch. Not that this is the case for all, but I am sure it's the case for the majority, particularly now we're at the point where in most families both parents are out at work all day and have to choose between spending time with their kids or in the kitchen prepping and making dinner.



    I agree, it highlights the issue and if it causes one person to really consider their health and diet then its served a purpose but i think the whole process from education is key.

    I completely agree if you go looking you will find cheaper veg and that is exactly what my family and I do, Lidl and Aldi are great for cheaper veg but that is for us as adults who are doing a weekly shop and are prepared to cook and plan etc. I mean more for kids or young adults, for example next time you walk into a Tesco Express or similar look to see what offers are on and what items are positioned at the end of aisles with deals such as £1 for this or 4 for 3 on these, they might have offers on snackable veg and fruit but those items are positioned far behind the whisper snack packs and dairy milk 500g bars which you can by when on offer cheaper than a pot of melon and grapes and that is where the education or routine starts for our kids.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
    6raham wrote: »
    6raham wrote: »
    Personally I think the day we can purchase vegetables cheaper than we can buy fast food, educate kids effectively in school on nutrition and food preparation make sport / physical education a daily event in school is the day we have a positive impact on obesity numbers. Not just a picture on a bus stop...

    It's a fair point you make, but do you think the uproar the picture on a bus stop has caused might highlight more the needs for these things to the people who are responsible for ensuring this education is happening and result in more people being aware of the campaign to tackle obesity, particularly in children?

    Cancer Research's policy on obesity does state they are on several steering groups/forum in England, Scotland & Wales that are working with the government to tackle obesity and have encouraged people to also contact their MP to support the ban on daytime fast food/junk food ads.

    I do also think that the cost of fresh fruit and vegetables is not really as much of an issue as people think. Take Aldi for instance, they have their Super 6 running all year round, this week there are courgettes, aubergines, sugar snap peas, peaches, melon and romaine lettuce. Tesco had the wonky veg range. Then you can get bags of frozen veg relatively cheap too and these will often create far more meals than the cost of one item of fast food.

    In my opinion, in the UK, the reason people buy more fast food than fresh is that it's more convenient rather than it being cheaper. Much easier to bang some stuff in the oven and microwave, than cook something from scratch. Not that this is the case for all, but I am sure it's the case for the majority, particularly now we're at the point where in most families both parents are out at work all day and have to choose between spending time with their kids or in the kitchen prepping and making dinner.



    I agree, it highlights the issue and if it causes one person to really consider their health and diet then its served a purpose but i think the whole process from education is key.

    I completely agree if you go looking you will find cheaper veg and that is exactly what my family and I do, Lidl and Aldi are great for cheaper veg but that is for us as adults who are doing a weekly shop and are prepared to cook and plan etc. I mean more for kids or young adults, for example next time you walk into a Tesco Express or similar look to see what offers are on and what items are positioned at the end of aisles with deals such as £1 for this or 4 for 3 on these, they might have offers on snackable veg and fruit but those items are positioned far behind the whisper snack packs and dairy milk 500g bars which you can by when on offer cheaper than a pot of melon and grapes and that is where the education or routine starts for our kids.

    Totally agree, that is precisely what CRUK are campaigning against, the ads are just one part of a much larger campaign:

    nefoho7l74nu.png
    excerpt from CRUK Website which the link on the ad is for.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
    EatPig wrote: »
    Replying to this: "I think obesity can be caused by a large range of things, sometimes it's a choice and sometimes it's not. The blanket statement is upsetting but I understand the point its trying to drive home."
    No - not true at all.
    It's simple physics: You can't create matter out of nothing. Even our wonderful bodies can't just create matter.
    You have to have a specific amount of matter to convert to fat. In this case: it's calories.
    Each calorie can only be converted into a specific amount of fat - no more, no less.
    The laws of our universe don't allow anything else.
    The logic that we are spreading today to make ourselves feel better about being overweight are only harming us. We have to stop lying to ourselves while we watch our life expectancies get smaller and smaller.
    The real science is out there - but whenever someone uses real science, the people that don't want to hear the truth use 'fat shaming' and 'health at any size' to shut it down.
    It's fine if you don't want to put in the work to lose weight. But don't try to stop others that just want to he healthy.

    I agree with most of what you say here, except the bolded, I don't think it's true that people necessarily don't want to put the work in, it's just that they don't understand the basics or that they have underlying issues that need to be dealt with before weight loss can be tackled successfully whether this be mental health issues, disordered eating or issues with medication side effects (appetite/fatigue).

    For example there's not a hope in hell I could have lost weight successfully on one particular kind of contraceptive pill that my doctor put me on (despite my protesting the change, it was a government guideline to get me off the one that had worked fine for 16 years so my Dr didn't really have much choice either). I was having heavy painful periods with just a 2 week break in between, my appetite was all over the place and I was extremely fatigued as a result to the point where I had to quit my job overseas and return to the UK. Yes CICO would apply, did I want to lose weight for my health? Yes, could I? probably but at a detriment to my mental health, did I? No because it wasn't my top priority, my top priority at that time was sorting out the hormonal imbalance caused by the medication and finding a new job/home.

    So whilst I agree medication doesn't directly cause weight gain or stop weight loss, it can indirectly cause issues if they are not dealt with.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    EatPig wrote: »
    Replying to this: "I think obesity can be caused by a large range of things, sometimes it's a choice and sometimes it's not. The blanket statement is upsetting but I understand the point its trying to drive home."
    No - not true at all.
    It's simple physics: You can't create matter out of nothing. Even our wonderful bodies can't just create matter.
    You have to have a specific amount of matter to convert to fat. In this case: it's calories.
    Each calorie can only be converted into a specific amount of fat - no more, no less.
    The laws of our universe don't allow anything else.
    The logic that we are spreading today to make ourselves feel better about being overweight are only harming us. We have to stop lying to ourselves while we watch our life expectancies get smaller and smaller.
    The real science is out there - but whenever someone uses real science, the people that don't want to hear the truth use 'fat shaming' and 'health at any size' to shut it down.
    It's fine if you don't want to put in the work to lose weight. But don't try to stop others that just want to he healthy.

    I agree with most of what you say here, except the bolded, I don't think it's true that people necessarily don't want to put the work in, it's just that they don't understand the basics or that they have underlying issues that need to be dealt with before weight loss can be tackled successfully whether this be mental health issues, disordered eating or issues with medication side effects (appetite/fatigue).

    Right, or their mental energy is taken up by so many other things that figuring out how to lose weight (which many people assume is much more complicated than it is, and that it must be a very unpleasant process) does't make it to the top of their priorities, but gets put off again and again.

    I tend to think that seeing it as a medical issue is helpful, as it does give a reason to prioritize it, and it also is a different type of focus than people often have. Medical intervention (doctor saying you need to lose weight for health reasons) can be a major incentive, it's one of the top reasons people who lose give for their incentive, from what I've read.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,961 Member
    Advertising this is great. The only issue I've ever found with certain advertising is that people who don't care, still won't care. Surgeon General writes on cigarette packs of the dangers of smoking. How many smokers really care? Here we in CA we have a warning at all fast food drive thrus (Prop 65) that states there may be cancer causing chemicals in some of the food. Fast food is still booming business in the US.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Advertising this is great. The only issue I've ever found with certain advertising is that people who don't care, still won't care. Surgeon General writes on cigarette packs of the dangers of smoking. How many smokers really care? Here we in CA we have a warning at all fast food drive thrus (Prop 65) that states there may be cancer causing chemicals in some of the food. Fast food is still booming business in the US.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png

    But it does seem to be working in the long run, far less young people take up smoking and the number of smokers has dramatically dropped in the UK & Ireland (not sure about the rest of the EU) since it was banned in public places and cigarette advertising was banned on TV/sports events/etc.

    https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/statistics-on-smoking/statistics-on-smoking-england-2018/part-4-smoking-patterns-in-children
  • beingcp
    beingcp Posts: 6 Member
    My weight had crept up until in November a Doctor's visit had the nurse tell me I had become borderline obese and was at greater risk of cancer and diabetes.

    I think most of us don't become fat overnight - it is a slow process of consuming too much over time and a series of short sharp shocks is what some people need to get themselves in better shape. But this is easy for me to say as I have an amateur sporting history so running/cycling/gym work is all familiar and effective - I know how much I can push this 60-year old body and I have no problem with motivation, injury or recovery.

    People who have never exercised are in a different place so whilst this sort of advertising affects me very positively, I can also understand how an obese person who has never trained could be just stigmatised by this.


  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
    edited July 2019
    beingcp wrote: »
    My weight had crept up until in November a Doctor's visit had the nurse tell me I had become borderline obese and was at greater risk of cancer and diabetes.

    I think most of us don't become fat overnight - it is a slow process of consuming too much over time and a series of short sharp shocks is what some people need to get themselves in better shape. But this is easy for me to say as I have an amateur sporting history so running/cycling/gym work is all familiar and effective - I know how much I can push this 60-year old body and I have no problem with motivation, injury or recovery.

    People who have never exercised are in a different place so whilst this sort of advertising affects me very positively, I can also understand how an obese person who has never trained could be just stigmatised by this.


    That's just it though, you don't need intentional exercise to lose weight (although it's good for your health). Many people here on MFP have lost and maintained that loss by just eating less (small tweaks to portions of higher calorie foods and including more lower calorie high volume foods) and increasing their NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) with little tweaks to their existing routine - parking a little further away when going to the supermarket, taking the stairs instead of an escalator, watching a little less TV and doing something on their feet instead, etc. This is exactly why better education and support is needed from governments, so people don't think it's more complex than it actually is.
  • beingcp
    beingcp Posts: 6 Member
    beingcp wrote: »
    My weight had crept up until in November a Doctor's visit had the nurse tell me I had become borderline obese and was at greater risk of cancer and diabetes.

    I think most of us don't become fat overnight - it is a slow process of consuming too much over time and a series of short sharp shocks is what some people need to get themselves in better shape. But this is easy for me to say as I have an amateur sporting history so running/cycling/gym work is all familiar and effective - I know how much I can push this 60-year old body and I have no problem with motivation, injury or recovery.

    People who have never exercised are in a different place so whilst this sort of advertising affects me very positively, I can also understand how an obese person who has never trained could be just stigmatised by this.


    That's just it though, you don't need intentional exercise to lose weight (although it's good for your health). Many people here on MFP have lost and maintained that loss by just eating less (small tweaks to portions of higher calorie foods and including more lower calorie high volume foods) and increasing their NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) with little tweaks to their existing routine - parking a little further away when going to the supermarket, taking the stairs instead of an escalator, watching a little less TV and doing something on their feet instead, etc. This is exactly why better education and support is needed from governments, so people don't think it's more complex than it actually is.

    But with exercise you get treats too when your net calorie intake still shows less than your daily target!

    To be fair I 'get' that some people can't/won't exercise but for fast and lasting results and to drive the sort of lifestyle change you need to maintain in the longer term, exercise is a vital component. I think it is enormously hard to lose weight and keep it off just by diet alone - and much research tends to suggest that fitter and leaner is the holy grail not just leaner.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,126 Member
    edited July 2019
    beingcp wrote: »
    beingcp wrote: »
    My weight had crept up until in November a Doctor's visit had the nurse tell me I had become borderline obese and was at greater risk of cancer and diabetes.

    I think most of us don't become fat overnight - it is a slow process of consuming too much over time and a series of short sharp shocks is what some people need to get themselves in better shape. But this is easy for me to say as I have an amateur sporting history so running/cycling/gym work is all familiar and effective - I know how much I can push this 60-year old body and I have no problem with motivation, injury or recovery.

    People who have never exercised are in a different place so whilst this sort of advertising affects me very positively, I can also understand how an obese person who has never trained could be just stigmatised by this.


    That's just it though, you don't need intentional exercise to lose weight (although it's good for your health). Many people here on MFP have lost and maintained that loss by just eating less (small tweaks to portions of higher calorie foods and including more lower calorie high volume foods) and increasing their NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) with little tweaks to their existing routine - parking a little further away when going to the supermarket, taking the stairs instead of an escalator, watching a little less TV and doing something on their feet instead, etc. This is exactly why better education and support is needed from governments, so people don't think it's more complex than it actually is.

    But with exercise you get treats too when your net calorie intake still shows less than your daily target!

    To be fair I 'get' that some people can't/won't exercise but for fast and lasting results and to drive the sort of lifestyle change you need to maintain in the longer term, exercise is a vital component. I think it is enormously hard to lose weight and keep it off just by diet alone - and much research tends to suggest that fitter and leaner is the holy grail not just leaner.

    Increasing NEAT also has the same benefits, for example, moving from Sedentary (accounts for approx 3000 steps per day and under) to Lightly Active (5-7000 steps per day) would increase someones net intake from BMR x 1.25 to BMR x 1.4 less a deficit.

    So if Jane Doe has a BMR of 1600 cals, by moving more throughout her day, she goes from a maintenance intake of 2000 to 2240 and losing a pound per week on 1740 instead of 1500 calories without going anywhere near a gym/bike/etc, still gets the benefits of moving more (better cardio health, etc) and doesn't cost a penny.