Friday, February 24, 2012

Clean Eating In The News: The Government Doesn't Have Your Best Interests at "Heart" - Shocking, I Know...

      The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (that’s a government agency, an arm of the National Institute of Health - NIH  ) has partnered w/ Diet Coke to help spread “The Heart Truth” and encourage “heart healthy behaviors”.



What, like drinking liquid plastic with caramel coloring? Yeah, that’s great for your heart.


" Diet Coke® continues to support The Heart Truth® through a variety of awareness-building activities including retail programs across the country and online advertising, partnerships and visibility on more than 6 billion packages of Diet Coke featuring The Heart Truth logo.
This year, Diet Coke is asking its fans and followers to help raise awareness and funding for women's heart health programs. Funds raised will go to the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) in support of The Heart Truth and women's heart health education and research.
For the fifth consecutive year, Diet Coke will also be the presenting sponsor of The Heart Truth's Red Dress Collection Fashion Show. The Diet Coke Heart Health Ambassador will walk in the Red Dress Collection 2012 Fashion Show to further raise awareness of the issue. For more information on how to participate in the campaign, visit www.DietCoke.com/HeartTruth."

     How Noble! Next, I think Phillip Morris should support the American Cancer Society. And putting a "Heart Healthy" logo on their soda cans? Nearly criminal.

      Ironically, their non-diet product, Coke, contains HFCS. That’s been directly linked to heart disease. Just more sad evidence that the government is NOT necessarily looking out for your best interests, particularly when it comes to health and nutrition. If they were, they wouldn't accept corporate money from a company that is devoted to making their heart unhealthy product the number 1 soda in the world.

Maybe partner with a water bottling company next time?

     Why is this Clean Eating news? Part of Clean Eating is filtering out all the background noise corporations throw at you to position their product in a more favorable ( read, healthy ) light. Learn to recognize marketing and promotion that is not in your best interests. Diet Coke is in this promotion only so they can slap that "Heart Healthy" logo on 6 billion packages - when it isn't, at all. It simply gives their product the impression of being heart healthy.

Always take the information you are given with a careful eye. While the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute might have good intentions, partnering with a soda manufacturer lacks the forethought someone over at NIH might have had before accepting a large check from a conglomo who is taking their carefully designed logo and using it for unhealthy purposes.