Advertising, marketing, the whole world in trouble etc...(deep!)

[Lizzer]

Hello all, going to break this big message up as I've been having problems posting, so bare with me...

This started on the celebrity b/feeding thread and it was just a comment from me after I was asked to expand on my opinion that formula milk should've only ever been used in circumstances where it was required to help a child survive and not stocked on the shelves at the supermarket. This has spiralled me into depths of the big old money-making and general-public-screwing machine known as advertising and how it has caused a lot of damage to our health, lifestyles and outlooks. I want to have a full on discussion about this and no holds barred. HOWEVER THIS IS NOT A SLAGGING OFF BOTTLE FEEDERS THREAD or BREAST FEEDING IS BEST THREAD and I don't want it to turn into one. Would be interested to hear if anyone agrees/disagrees with me though...

Hi theree, don't know how we got on to the subject but FWIW the woman I kow with the morst boobs in the world (I know that sounds awful but its true) bottlefed her two from biorth so I think its just completely individual, just as we are. But the fact that richard and judy were emphasising the wrong aspect of it all, ie b/feeding, makes me really sad.

Mears thanks for your info on nestle in Britain. It seems that they do market certain types of mother then. The one who 'cares' that her baby is getting the most nutritional goodness out of formula, the one who is on a budget, etc. Just like everything else we are sold. It puts us in pigeonholes.
Even own brand washing poweder does when you think about it. It is meant to appeal to the budget-concious person who is aware ther's not much difference between that and persil. While persil and the like rely on their adverts to push the product, supermarket own brands rely on the power of their whole-shopping imagery adverts to get the message across 'every little helps'

Sorry for all my typos in the last (and every) post! Eulalia, you interest me by the way you describe your living style. I had built up a mental picture of you over the many months on here and I wasn't far wrong, if I say so myself. To me it seems that you are how I would like to be in the future. I'm scared of how easily influenced I am by everything around me, and I want to take steps to rid me of my consumerist mindset. However its like a battle inside me. I'm like 'must be less swayed by advertising rubbish, must lead a more holistic lifestyle' but then if someon asks me what I want for christmas I'm like 'oh, you know that new face cream clinique brought out...' and I'm full of what I think NEED. What I think will enhance my life and that of my child. but which actually just gets in the way of acheiving my true goal on this planet.

But Eulalia you haven't actually stopped breast feeding which is where I think the issue lies. Mine were great when brestfeeding (once established). But I'm of the opinion really that every woman stops breastfeeding - its just that those who bottlefeed from birth stop before they have started IYSWIM. So they suffer the same effect which I think is the consensus on here.

Not convinced that having babies doesn't make you fat though.....

Bozza, having a baby definitely made me fat. I was a size 12 before and now nudge a 16 which for me personally, is horrific. I do exercise, but clearly eat too much, though I never had a problem before. I did read recently (study-mad, that's me) of a study showing that some women (a wee minority) have a genetic predisposition to hoard fat once they've had a baby. It's like a switch is flicked. Most women don't have this and the vast majority go back to their normal weight afterwards.

personally I think the best way to avoid being swayed by advertising is to limit your shopping time, in real life on online.

Advertising might have a lot to answer for - agree with the examples of bad advertsing given earlier on this thread - but I'm still persuaded to spend money by seeing shop displays alone.

re: having a baby can make you fat - having a toddler can then make you slimmer! I only regained my pre preg shape once I was running around after my toddlers.

Tigermoth my problem is that DS is just starting to walk places outside and I'm trying to encourage this (ie walk to mums and tots, walk to the playground etc) but the time it takes him I'd get more exercise shopping!! Whereas when he was younger I could put him in the pushchair and go for it. I suppose another 6 months and I'll be in your position...and struggling to keep up.

Bozza - yes I see what you mean. I did stop producing milk though when I was pregnant and they've not really changed much.

Lizzer - thanks for the compliments! However a lot of my way of thinking is really lack of choice as we don't have a large income coming into the house. Therefore to some extent we have to make do/buy cheaper/use less of things and so on. However I think even if I was rich I'd probably be mostly the same!

Eulalia - I think you are putting yourself down a bit there with regards to Lizzer's compliments. You have chosen a lifestyle that means you don't have a big income and hence not much spare cash but which presumably makes you/your family happy so its not really lack of choice.

Thanks Bozza. I see what you mean. I suppose its down to me chosing dh as it is him who is bringing in the income at the moment. I could have chosen a man with a better paid job! or indeed work myself.

I was thinking that we need some kind of advertising (although perhaps not so blatent as we have it with some products) as consumerism does of course produce jobs and helps to support the whole economy. But of course the argument could be that many of these jobs are poorly paid anyway (sales for example).

You obviusly do see what I mean Eulalia because you've expressed it a lot better than I did!

As for your second paragraph. I see where you're coming from but its one of those arguments where you end up tying yourself in knots. Should we advertise unnecessary products because it keeps people in crap jobs?

I know Bozza ... maybe more profits should be ploughed into better wages, but then again it seems that a lot of companies aren't actually doing that well. And ... is it better to employ more people at lower wages or less at higher wages? In some ways I'd rather see more people in employment because the alternative is paying people unemployment benefit for doing nothing. But then again people can get caught in a poverty trap wehre they get no benefits but struggle along with a poorly paid job. There isn't an easy answer.