SubscribeObesity is Suicide
Advertising is all about provocation. In a world that is overloaded with media and imagery advertisers are always looking for ways to make the message stand out.
This campaign claims that obesity is suicide. Is this a public service campaign or something else...?
As Starling Fitness points out - the small print points to the URL of a bariatric surgeon:
But it doesn't have to end this way. Find out how bariatric surgery can help. The Northern Bariatric Surgery Institute. www.cutweight.org
Strangulation by sausage and death by M&M's overdose.
from Brandon Knowlden / Struck Creative.
The posters are certainly creative - but is this the right sort of message?
More like this in Media Watch · Apr 24, 2008
And it's an ad for... bariatric surgery. Mmm, yeah.
Replythe small print isn't helpful because its too small. whe i was bigger, i felt worthless, like my life meant nothing; these posters confirm that feeling and if a person had a week enough will to live, i believe these images would be very influential.
ReplyI have never liked the proliferation of advertising in medicine, pharmacology, or law for that matter, nor have I participated in it.
ReplyClever, although the M&M one is pretty dumb because the woman doesn't seem to be overweight. I can see the conversation in the marketing department:
MARKETING EXEC 1: Hey, let's make some ads about how obesity is suicide, and we can show fat people lying dead with junk food.
MARKETING EXEC 2: Example?
MARKETING EXEC 1: How about some dead fat chick with M&M's lying around her? Like pills?
MARKETING EXEC 2: Awesome! But fat chicks don't sell. Let's use a pretty model instead.
CLEANING LADY: Hey guys, I couldn't help but overhear. Doesn't using a cleaning lady defeat the pur-
MARKETING EXEC 1: I love it! Let's run with it.
ReplyPsh, don't be silly. Everyone knows (and the media has done it's level best to inform them) that women are always overweight, no matter what.
ReplyYes. You can alway lose 10lb. Being 80lb is no excuse. Strive for 70lb.
We live in a sick world.
ReplyThis reminds me of a post made on another forum by a (not quite) recovering anorexic.
I believe the comment was made to her by some sort of nurse (not in treatment obviously, I think it was an oblivious school nurse or such), to the effect of "Wow, not many people can keep themselves healthy these days, whatever you're doing is working; keep at it."
The nurse said this to a girl that weighed all of 80 pounds dripping wet (if that) and was no shorter than 5'3" and probably taller. How much longer did she have to 'keep at it'?
ReplyWell, in this case I'm guessing until she dies, cause if she eats a little more, she might become an unhealthy 90lb, and that would be worse than death.
ReplyArgh. I'm somewhat conflicted about this, because while it is pointing out that essentially you are what you eat--eat junk and you will shorten your lifespan, etc.--I hate its connection to weight loss surgery. Why not find a healthier meat or something that's naturally sweet? Oh wait, that would be too hard, so let's go for the surgical and risky option.
ReplyI don't know if it helps to know this, but I believe these are part of someone's ad portfolio, rather than actual ads being run.
ReplyThe ads and what they are selling bother me, but the title of this post kind of hit home. I just found out about an old friend who died of a heroin overdose several years ago and have been thinking a lot about how that is basically suicide -- how could he have done that to himself? But this turns the tables back on me. If I die of an obesity-related disease, that would also be suicide, wouldn't it? It's something I can prevent that by losing weight.
ReplyWell I think this is what we're sold all the time! That losing weight is the answer to all our healthy problems. But is it really? I've seen plenty of research that indicates you can actually be healthy at every size and that it's less about whether we are fat or skinny and more about whether we are fit and living healthy lifestyles.... and DIETING, diet pills, and all the other weight loss measures we induldge in sure aren't even vaguely healthy.
ReplyAlso, bariatric surgery has a very high mortality rate for such a common procedure--something like 20%? So yeah, ongoing morbid obesity is something that should be addressed, but the quick fix of surgery might kill you a lot faster than the fat.
ReplyPlease provide data on this 20% mortality
This is what I found!
A recent large multi-center study reported that, in experienced hands, the overall complication rate of this type of surgery ranges from 7% for laparoscopic procedures to 14.5% for operations through open incisions, during the 30 days following surgery. Mortality for this study was 0% in 401 laparoscopic cases, and 0.6% in 955 open procedures. Similar mortality rates – 30-day mortality of 0.11%, and 90-day mortality of 0.3% – have been recorded in the U.S. Centers of Excellence program, the results from 33,117 operations at 106
Replycenters.
My husband's aunt was one of the 20% that died from complications from bariatric surgery. It wasn't the operation itself that killed her, but rather the fact that she didn't listen to her surgeon when he told her it was important to walk around after the surgery to prevent blood clots. She ended up getting a pulmonary embolism and died only 2 days after her operation.
ReplyStatistics do not have much meaning when faced with the loss of a loved one :-(
ReplyOn March 8th, 2008 I lost a good friend to complications from a gastric bypass. I'm not totally clear on the details but towards the end of the surgery something happened that made his muscles start spasming and he lost mobility. He started physical therapy and was relearning how to walk, but wasn't able to move around enough. About a month after the surgey he died from blood clots in his lungs. He was 38.
I think if the world wasn't so frantic about obesity, the "problem" would naturally reverse itself. But as it stands, the panic is producing mere bandaids for something much more complex. The problem is festering and getting worse while the few voices of reason are drowned out by the sensationalism of an epidemic. These ads are a part of the sensation. It infuriates me.
ReplyThat ad would make me hate myself more as it is somewhat mocking, but I suppose that is what was intended, to make the person feel so bad that they want to do something about it right then and there. Wonder if they use psychologists to come up with the stuff. I find it distasteful, no pun intended.
ReplyI can see bariatic centers using ads like those shown - if they aren't already ....
Thing is when talking about obesity - everyone says "Death" - there are things worse than death. Obesity can can cause a whole lot of serious health problems - which lessens your quality of life.
My husband was 200 pounds overweight - when he became ill ALL of his doctors pushed bariatic surgery ... But they never tell you about the complications down the road. And I don't know if there's been any studies on long term effects after surgery. I personally know of 2 people who became extremely ill a couple years after surgery ....
Anyways my husband lost 102 pounds in 2007 and is working on losing the remaining 100 pounds this year. All the good ole fashioned way by eating healthier more filling foods and less sugar. He hasn't exercised one bit (drs orders). You can read his full story at honestdietreviews.com/Mikes-story
I also get very upset how media always portrays thin women as obese or plus size. It's this stigma they put on us that gets us going on the yo-yo weight program for life.
ReplyAlthough I think they could have used better pictures (or none at all), I do agree that obesity is suicide! Using surgery as a quick-fix is not a good idea, but as a future nutrionist, I think that obesity is really shortening lives and the quality of life in general. I'm trying to get in shape the old fashioned way-watching what I eat and exercising alot, and I love it! I think if an overweight person just gave healthy living a chance they would be surprised at the results!
ReplyI don't like the tone of the ads because I don't think bariatric surgery is the only way to prevent "obesity-caused suicide". It's not like you have to give up eating your favorite foods forever, just learn to make healthier choices and get more exercise. I can see bariatric surgery being an option if you are so severely overweight that you really cannot exercise on your own, but most people don't fit that category. My husband's aunt was a good candidate for the surgery...she weighed around 400 lbs and had severe knee problems that prevented her from walking far. She had the operation and died from a pulmonary embolism 2 days after the surgery. It was a tragedy, but I wouldn't say that her being obese was a way that she was intentionally killing herself. There's a fine line between suicide (intentionally taking your own life) and tragic accidents (UNintentionally taking your own life). Most obese people I know aren't intentionally trying to kill themselves, they're just making a lot of bad choices. I'm not sure scaring people into getting surgery they may not even need is a good idea.
ReplyI've got really mixed feelings about this one... Anything drawing attention to the dangers of an unhealthy lifestyle has to be a good thing. But naturally, I don't like the fact that it's tied to surgery.
It also seems a little unsensitive to all the folks that are fully aware that they're putting their health at risk, desperately want to do something about it but are struggling to make it happen.
Let's face, knowing you need to do something and actually doing it is another matter. It's hard to change.
People are stuck in a lifetime of bad habits and have incredibly unhealthy relationships with food. I don't think ads like that do them any favors. They're just going to make those folks feel stupid, or guilty or both. ~ James
ReplyNot to mention the fact that you CAN gain the weight back after having bariatric surgery. It's not a permanent solution unless you make it that way...my aunt has a friend who had the surgery done and after losing about 80 lbs, she started eating very often and eating mostly high calorie foods. She basically out-ate the surgery...if you aren't ready to deal with the psychological issues involved, you shouldn't have the operation done.
ReplySeveral commenters have referred to bariatric surgery as a "quick fix" which is just a way of dismissing something that you probably have ill-informed opinions about. Bariatric surgery is a tool to assist dieting. If someone (and some people do) has the surgery and then doesn't follow the diet, they won't lose much weight, so it's not a fix, and they will get more ill. Patients who inform themselves, follow the program and diet will get "fixed" (in the vast majority of cases) but it won't be all that quick. My husband just had the surgery. He lost 75 lbs. before it and wants to lose another 100 lbs. and he is very faithfully following the diet and starting workouts with a personal trainer just three weeks after the surgery. I'm sure he will reach his goal and thus lengthen and improve the quality of his life. But it could take at least a year to get there. How is this a quick fix? Without the surgery, he faces the choice of feeling empty and hungry almost constantly for the rest of his life or re-gaining the weight. That is why he chose (and I feel, needed) the surgery.
ReplyYeah, it's definitely NOT the quick fix that people think it is. So many people are very uninformed about what the surgery actually is...it's a tool to help you lose weight; you still have to do the work to lose the weight. I know a woman who had the operation done and managed to gain a significant amount of weight back after her operation. She did it by eating very often, eating very high-sugar, high calorie meals (unfortunately for her, she wasn't a "dumper") and basically by not following the doctor's rules. Most people that I know that have had the surgery say that for the first 5-6 months, the weight loss is pretty effortless because your stomach is so tiny, but after that, it gets harder and you have to basically do what everyone else does to lose the rest of the weight.
ReplyI have mixed feelings about the ads themselves, but I do find it interesting that they've used a man who is obviously significantly overweight, yet the woman doesn't look overweight at all. Isn't that the modern media?
I remember reading years back about a magazine that invited their readers to try out for a photo shoot. It seems the magazine wanted to portray "real women". And then in the small print, it specified "Size 8 or under". LOL.
ReplyWell, size 8 and under women are women too xD.
Now if the ad has specified 'Men only', I would be left wondering.
ReplyIt's true. Most people who over eat are trying to forget their problems. just like people who overdose on drugs. There is an old adage that talks about "digging your grave with your fork."
ReplyThe risk of dying from bariatric surgery is roughly 1 in 200, a far cry from 20%.
I wrote about risks/benefits of surgery at my healthy lifestyle blog recently:
http://advancedmediterraneandiet.com/blog/?p=18
Obesity itself is not a major risk factor for premature death until your body mass index is 40 or higher.
-Steve Parker, M.D.
ReplyI strongly dislike these ads for a variety of reasons.
1) They trivialize suicide.
2) They make it seem the only solution to obesity is surgey (regardless of the statistics or your opinion of it, surgery is a serious choice, not be made lightly).
3) They assume all people are fat soley because they eat too much (and of course, they only eat fatty sausages or sweets).
I could go on, but I'm too busy eating myself to death (please note sarcasm here...)
ReplyPass the last potatoes please, I've got a deadline to meet!
ReplyI would venture a guess that these ads are about as effective as those making the rounds in the '70's that showed a shriveled-up old woman with the caption, "Smoking makes you beautiful". They served only to make me and my friends laugh, nothing else... and many of them are smoking today.
Nothing but scare tactics, and as one who has had a *bit* of experience, this does nothing but make me feel MORE crappy (because being obese is *the* worst offense in this society - worse than being a bigot, or even a murderer. They can be forgiven, I cannot, because I'm fat), rather than motivated to fix the (my) problem. Of course, I'm not one to rush off after major surgery based on a picture, but then I also know that surgery won't work for me (or most fat people) because it's not the eating that's causing the problem - the eating is a symptom.
But that's too complex for those who are making these ridiculous ads.
Oh, and what is that woman? A size six??? Way to make her "look fat" by drawing some lines on her neck with eyeliner...
ReplyInteresting.... this appears on the bottom of the homepage of the site listed above the picture (www.cutweight.org)
"Important Disclaimer:
It has been brought to my attention that there are posters circulating on the internet that are being associated with me. I would like it to be known that I am in no way associated with this marketing campaign and I have taken formal action to have my name and likeness removed from any such product, poster, internet site or publication.
ReplyJust for clarification, I have never been associated with this organization and am disgusted by their vulgar display of obesity. This is something I would never stand for and am appalled that anyone would even consider placing material of this nature out for public viewing."
Very clever ads. I think they should really hit home with a great number of people.
ReplyThat was definitely done with poor taste and judgment. While according to C. Everett Koop, former U.S. Surgeon General, obesity is the 2nd leading cause of preventable death in America, calling it "suicide" does more harm than good.
ReplyI am a personal trainer of 10 years in Austin, Texas, and know how hard it is for very overweight people to lose weight.
For those interested, my weight loss tips can be found here http://ybyl.com/wordpress/?cat=6
Scott McTeer, www.ybyl.com/wordpress (blog)
I know some will find this ad offensive but I think it's ACCURATE! Have you ever watched Dr. G (medical examiner) ? Last time I saw it, a mother with a newborn and a toddler had died mysteriously. Her family didn't understand the cause of her death so they hired a medical examiner. It turns out she died of an enlarged heart because of her obesity. She left two children orphaned (Dad wasn't around either). Obesity kills! It's time we take the truth and treat it as a deadly condition.
ReplyWhy are they spending so much money so people can lose weight...when you can do it yourself!
Replyi know its hard...and some people cant do it..
but surgery should be the LAST option.
Id rather them spend their money doing something for those people who cant HELP whatever condition or disease they have...but hey i might be wrong T.T
:)