Want to know the number one predictor for the development of an eating disorder? Poor body image. And in an attempt to minimize the effect of the media on body image there's a bill proposed in Spain that will ban television commercials for plastic surgery and "slimming products" before 10pm.
Interestingly in the early stages of the bill there was also a provision regarding banning promotions for low-fat foods. I guess lawmakers figured that the ads therein would also be busily promoting what they're calling, "the cult of the body".
Now I'm all for banning these types of advertisements which in turn may indeed be contributing to eating disorders such as anorexia among Spanish youth. But where's the ban that might help with obesity?
According to a recent article in European Psychiatry, the incidence of eating disorders among Spanish adolescent girls is in the neighbourhood of 5% where roughly 75% will recover and 25% will face difficult long term courses.
Now let's peek at Spanish overweight and obesity rates. Roughly 45% of Spanish adults are overweight and 13% are obese. Among Spanish children the rates back in 1995 were 15% obese and 35% overweight.
Sure makes you wonder about priorities.
The thing is, it's easy politically to look at banning "slimming product" and plastic surgery advertisements - they don't have a tremendous lobby. Food on the other hand does which is likely why the provision to extend the ban to advertisements for low-fat foods was quickly stripped from the bill.
At the end of the day Big Food is a force to be reckoned with and even though banning advertisements for junk foods almost certainly would have an impact on rates of childhood and adult obesity (more on this tomorrow), rates orders of magnitude higher than those of eating disorders, you can bet your bottom euro that the Spanish parliament isn't going to be entertaining a ban on them any time soon.
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I think that part of the obesity problem may be related to the dieting industry, though.
ReplyDeleteOne dieting can lead to yo-yo dieting and binge eating etc...
It's all about an unhealthy relationship with food and exercise.
So I do think fighting eating disorders will have a subsequent impact on obesity rates.
I spent a few months in Spain a couple of years ago, and it was a very interesting place from the diet-and-exercise point of view.
ReplyDeleteAlmost all of the Spaniards we saw were in a healthy weight range, and really quite fit. This was in spite of what appears to be a terrible lifestyle. They smoked like chimneys, they eat tons of meat and cheese, and vegetables were remarkably hard to come by, at least in stores. Everybody had a little garden on the edge of their village, but we were there in spring so there wasn't much.
Still, from the outside, the diet looks terrible - white rice, white bread, lots of cheese, lots of meat particularly pork, skimpy on the vegetables and fruit. French fries were served with everything. And those non-stop cigarettes.
The saving grace was the fact that their towns and villages were built for walking, not for cars and everybody did walk, everywhere, all the time. Also, while they all had "siestas" in the middle of the afternoon, those siestas were spent by most people in walking around with their friends and young children while their older kids played soccer.
If Spain starts becoming more of a car-based culture, they are going to be in for some real trouble without a huge change to their traditional diet.
I think that the media's emphasis on curing anorexia and bulimia, and not obesity, is indicative of a broad social issue: telling a dangerously thin woman to gain weight is considered appropriate. When we see a girl's ribcage, that she should eat is irrefutable. However, there is a social taboo against telling an overweight person that he or she needs to lose weight. If someone is morbidly obese but "happy", then we praise their self-esteem. In teen magazines, there are articles about girls dealing with anorexia, but not compulsive overeating (well, usually). I don't think Big Food is to blame for this one - I think that, in general, people need to start acknowledging that being overweight is just as dangerous as being underweight.
ReplyDeleteI think that the media's emphasis on curing anorexia and bulimia, and not obesity, is indicative of a broad social issue: telling a dangerously thin woman to gain weight is considered appropriate. When we see a girl's ribcage, that she should eat is irrefutable. However, there is a social taboo against telling an overweight person that he or she needs to lose weight. If someone is morbidly obese but "happy", then we praise their self-esteem. In teen magazines, there are articles about girls dealing with anorexia, but not compulsive overeating (well, usually). I don't think Big Food is to blame for this one - I think that, in general, people need to start acknowledging that being overweight is just as dangerous as being underweight.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting post. I am always saying to my husband that I wish they would stop putting those damn junk food adds on tv. I am always watching my weight because as I get older I seem to eat more but do less and the extra kilo's easily find me. I have family history of heart disease, diabetes, stroke and have HBP and diabetes even though I am forever trying to keep my weight in the right range with good eating and exercise...but, we are so easily led astray. You can be good all day and then wham those damn adds come on tv and all you can do is that of that ice-cream or chips or whatever it is that is put in front of your face. Luckily we dont keep it in the house but it can so easily make you want to jump in the car and get some at some late night service station. They need to get rid of the junk food adds full stop.
ReplyDeleteKhristina in Australia