Study: Coca-Cola Shaped China's Efforts To Fight Obesity

(Todd Allen) #1

It sounds like China has also been swallowing too much coke funded science…

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/01/10/683919100/study-coca-cola-shaped-chinas-efforts-to-fight-obesity?utm_campaign=business

Coca-Cola crafted ideas such as “Energy Balance” and “Exercise is Medicine” to construct a narrative that all foods (including Coca-Cola) are part of a healthy diet as long as they’re balanced with physical activity.

…

Speakers at these conferences almost exclusively emphasized the importance of physical activity in preventing obesity and did not mention the role of restricting calories or limiting sugary beverages and processed foods.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #2

Typical mass produced industrial food hogwash. :confused: No need to cut out our high fructose corn syrup beverage you just need to exercise it off!

#3

Fox guarding the henhouse. Great position to be in when you are the fox.

When you produce an unhealthy product it pays to influence idiot politicians and bureaucrats and other policymakers so they can in turn influence public opinion. It has been done in this country for years, unfortunately.

“ILSI-China was well-positioned to align Chinese obesity science and policy with Coca-Cola’s emphasis on a lack of physical activity, as opposed to diet, as the major cause of obesity.”

I am confused about the word “science” being used throughout the entire article. Where the heck is the science that shows you can ignore what you eat and drink sugary drinks like Coca-Cola and overcome obesity as long as you exercise? For that manner, where is the science that you can reduce weight by exercise alone and it has nothing to do with diet.

Exercise is great for long-term health but is not a factor when losing weight. When I was a fat guy, I was active and exercised a lot, which resulted me in being a fat guy. Never lost a pound from exercise, no matter how much I did. Started eating Keto, and lost 80 pounds. I still exercise, by the way, for overall health and not to do with weight control.

So are the Chinese gullible to accept this pap from their government? Yes. We, Americans, have and still do. It worked on us.

Thanks, Todd, interesting article. It is good to know how companies do it.

#4

Instead of saying “swallowing”, isn’t it more accurate to say “snorting”? That would explain the discrepancy between reality and their so-callled science.

#5

So if Coke peddles health advice that means they can be sued when it’s proven within reasonable doubt that they’re pretty much the ones who kick-started China’s diabetes epidemic, right?

(Jane) #6

I noticed so many overweight people in rural China the last time I was there. It belies the stereotype of the thin Asian eating tons of rice and not gaining weight.

I was in the Shangdong province WAY away from the large cities of Beijing and Shanghai and there was a KFC across from my hotel and at the train station. I was grateful for them because it was the only place I could order food when I was by myself since nobody speaks English. No numbers, but I could take a picture of the menu and then point to the sandwich I wanted.

Only been back once since keto and managed to avoid KFC thank-goodness. Will be going again next month.

(Todd Allen) #7

Unfortunately a lot of published science is corporation paid for propaganda. The principles of science are good and should be the measure of what is deemed science as opposed to what gets published automatically earning the label.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #8

Things have really changed since I was there in 1985. They had coke but it was only affordable by foreigners mostly. Didn’t see many overweight people at all. :confused:

If they have the grilled chicken on the menu it’s low carb. I don’t eat there but I read it about in a keto at chain restaurants article somewhere.

(Jane) #9

Unlike Europe where the cities are structured where you can walk most everywhere, or take transit to an area and then walk… most of the Chinese were on motorized scooters. They had an amazing variety of motorized transportation but hardly anyone was walking and the motorized scooters far outnumbered the bicycles (as opposed to Amsterdam).

Maybe it was the distances they had to travel to get to their jobs - don’t know.

(Full Metal KETO AF) #10

When I was there it was about 10,000,000 black English 3speed bicycles everywhere all made at the same factory. People would try to tie a ribbon or something on to differentiate them. But still like finding a
needle in a haystack.

#11

Looking forward to the thinkpieces that say 300 million Chinese people collectively lost their willpower in 1980, just like so many Americans did in the 70s., rather than admit there might be a different problem.

#12

Makes me wonder how much other junk science gets published every year in other fields. As an engineer, I have confidence in science but I am very dismayed at what passes as science in the nutrition field.

(Todd Allen) #13

Gary Taubes and Nina Teicholz have talked and written a lot about the egregious violation of good science practices in nutrition “science”. It may be the worst of any field due to a combination of it being extremely hard to do well - can’t easily control or even accurately track people’s diet for long periods of time and most of the research is funded or influenced by corporate agendas. Medical & pharmaceutical science has a lot of issues but there is more oversight and greater risk for blatant fraud.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ioannidis

Ioannidis studies scientific studies themselves, in clinical medicine and social science. He is one of the most-cited scientists in the literature, and his 2005 paper “Why Most Published Research Findings Are False”.[1][2] is the most downloaded paper in the Public Library of Science and has the highest number of Mendeley readers across all science.