To think that banning junk food advertising won’t solve obesity?

[MyWaryUser]

People make their own choices - how much do ads really influence them and isn’t it just a scapegoat?

It’s also in large part a capitalist society problem. The food and drinks manufacturers make millions out of people eating their crap food. They get obese, they get health problems and then…. hey presto; the big pharma companies step in with a weight-loss jab set to make them billions.

Basically it’s all fine as long as companies can make money out of the masses one way or another.

If advertising didn't work, companies wouldn't spend millions on advertising.

I think a better approach is for people to know what they're eating & more regulation on claims on packaging. Marketing is powerful, but we still choose what we eat. We just need to have more clear information on what we're eating.

There's a doco I watched recently where a food scientist picked out the claims & lies. One that stuck with me was 'no added sugar or artificial sweeteners' in muesli bars. They use highly calorific dates instead. So it's high sugar, but claims not to be.

I sit at morning tea & lunch at work & almost everyone has high cal packaged snacks & lunches, some which we think are healthy (like yoghurt). We're sold a healthy option that's been processed with loads of sugar & fat. And in portions that are too large.