Sadiq Khan shouldn't be able to tell us what is an unhealthy body

[feellikeahugefailure]

So the London Mayer has banned adverts with “Unhealthy or Unrealistic” body images. Doesn't this just all feed into people these days unaware of what a healthy body image is? This woman is in great shape and looks very healthy to me.

Sorry if there has been a post on this, I find the advanced search here not that great.

Anyone is free to write a blog, the fact that the one linked to is badly written is neither here nor there imo
almost all blogs are badly written and self indulgent
If you have talent and any sense you'd presumably try and get paid for your efforts

Rebel - nothing, 'cause it's bullshit. Some people want to look flawless and that is who the ad would be aimed at. Me? Not really.

Is wanting to look flawless and using a product that claims to help, even though the image used is unattainable for most, a bad thing? If so why are there no calls for those to be banned?

Does unattainable flawless skin not fall in to the same category as an unattainable size 10 toned body?

She is NOT a size 10!

Well whatever size she is then! 6, 8, 10..... she's still got a bloody good figure whatever it is!

No its not my site, I linked to an opinion site as it's the only one that shared my POV. The news was bit old else I'd of linked to the bbc.

If you want a site with the other view there are loads

The tube is full of adverts that are manipulative and designed to make people feel bad to spend money on shit.

I don't agree with the advert, and I agree the sentiment from the mayors office. But where does this stop?

Come January half the adverts are for diets and all that.

Crap blog. But her list of clickable words made me laugh

apple cider vinegar aubergine avocados bean Brazil nuts breakfast buckwheat butter bean cacao Cayenne chia chocolate cold cranberry dip fig green Guess the food hemp life hacks Mediation mouth nettles nut raw rocket Sauce smoked paprika smoothie sorbet spinach Spirulina sunflower seeds superfood superfoods sweet potato Tea teeth Tomato tomatoes Turmeric vegan walnut wildlife Xylitol

Well it kinda matters,since most models are a size 0 and put a lot of hard work into keeping it that way,because it's part of their job. Not only is that unattainable for most people,it's also unsustainable.
Oh and a size 10-12 is normally on the plus size model range ;)

It ridiculous banning this ad. Do we live in a dictatorship? Every advert could be described as 'shaming' someone.

Detol ads are hygeine shaming.
Razor ads are beard shaming.
Holiday ads are lifestyle shaming.
Mortgage ads are property shaming.
So I feel bad because I don't clean as much as the detail housewife, my DP is unkempt because he doesn't shave everyday, my life is miserable because I dont holiday abroad and I am a shit parent because I don't have as expensive a house as ... the average person.

That's what adverts do. Ban them all or lay off the hypocrisy.

I agree flawless skin is even more unattainable
I could physically get to a size 10 with a lot of work
I can't make my skin flawless and nor could dd when she had bad acne
She got depressed about those Clearasil ads that suggested you couldn't possibly go on a date if you had A SPOT
so we discussed why and how adverts work

I think banning this one is pathetic, knee jerk and stupid.

Hewl exactly... She got depressed over a stupid add implying unless a certain standard is achieved she shouldn't do smth.. Like going on a date!! But why should she? Why should they in their bid for money impose those standards,and profit from your dd's depression. You had a chat with her and we're assuming it worked,what about all the young girls that don't have someone to talk to or they can't be bothered to explain these things? What about the ones that are told they're ugly at home and at school...etc
I'm fat, i'm unhealthy, it's on me and up to me to change it. But all i need to go to the beach is a beach and a body and i'm ready.

That would be an American size 0, yes? Which is what - 32-22-32? I was that size 'til my mid twenties without any trouble at all!

London Mayor Bans “Unhealthy or Unrealistic” Body Images

Does that mean fat people are banned from adverts because they portrait an unhealthy body image?

What size is Mr Khan going to allow? Surly if you take this to the extreme, pretty much every body image is unrealistic to someone. Maybe a quota system? For every skinny person in an ad you have one fat person?

Peachpudding it's about adds that say you need to be a certain way to do certain things like going to the beach,or going on a date.

RebelRogue - what should a clearasil ad do then? Is it possible to advertise skin cleaning products without suggesting clean skin is preferable?

Imagine the ad that said buy our soap which cleans your skin but its perfectly acceptable to have dirty skin and therefore you won't need to buy our product?

Should we ban Oral-B adverts because they suggest that only spotlessly white, perfectly even teeth are healthy?

Think you're doing a good job with your teeth? Dentist says No! It's time to Go Pro!

But that Beach Body Ready advert didn't say you have to look like that, that is your (and obviously others) interpretation of it. There are many people who haven't interpreted it that way.

What, if there is one, would be an acceptable way to advertise the product in question?

I don't look at that ad and think that is what I am supposed to look like, because I am a sane sensible person who knows why adverts do that. I look at the ad and think, 'maybe' if I wanted to lose a few pounds I might try their product, or maybe I will just go for a run.... Big deal.

If a child is brought up healthy and happy then they won't even see it as body shaming. My DC were shown this at school, about photoshopping unrealistic body images. Banning adverts will only make the effects of body shaming worse not better.

I agree very much with peachpudding's post.

I am going to do a bit of a U-Turn. If the reason for banning the ad was because it's misleading and promotes unhealthy food supplements by making inaccurate claims about its properties then fine, it should be banned if in breach of the advertising standard agency rules.

The ad portrays the woman in a relatively empowered way. She does look fit and strong rather than feeble. The image still objectives the model but she looks sort of in control. I would bet, however, that the image is photoshopped and think ads with image manipulation should declare this.

The lighting is also quite different, quite contrasty and edgy and looks more stereotypically 'male'. Mhm.. could be drawing on all sorts of things, even kind of Trans. Interesting.

Weight loss products and an obesogenic culture
What a money spinner

What if someone told you,your mother,sister,daughter best friend etc that they should not be on the beach because they're not x size. Or that they would not go on a date with them because their face is not ready for a date? Will you be angry?would you think they're twats and protest? Then why just because it's a company sending that message to millions of women and girls it suddenly becomes acceptable? Where do you think the mean kids/ teens get their ideas about what is an acceptable look or not?
A pp mentioned her daughter got DEPRESSED by a similar add,but that ok isn't it? It's just an add and suck it up buttercup

10tinycrabs what's empowering about a woman that promotes a product that she herself wouldn't touch?

"Detol ads are hygeine shaming.
Razor ads are beard shaming.
Holiday ads are lifestyle shaming.
Mortgage ads are property shaming."

I agree with all these points. If we can't get rid of advertising in general, at least we can educate our dc to understand how ads are skilfully and purposefully constructed and not merely 'natural' landmarks in our social environment. Teach them to untangle the ridiculous claims and narratives designed to fill somebody's pockets.

Only read page 1 so far but agree with the majority

Rebel - for me the problem is that it seems to be about singling out ads featuring women of a particular build.

If we were to ban all photoshopped ads, all ads promoting only one version as ideal, all ads that could be interpreted as promoting one version of ideal, all ads implying that you should or must anything without scientific evidence to back that up... then that would be fine.

If it's about banning ads because they feature a woman who most women will never look like... I think that's wrong.