Lies in Advertising (is that redundant?)

I have always scrutinized commercials. I think they are largely responsible for perpetuating one stereotype after another. Recently, one commercial caught my eye and sent me on a Google (can I use “Google” that way?) frenzy. Then, lo’ and behold, I saw another commercial of the same topic and thought that something was seriously wrong.

Take a look at the first commercial. The second one is at the bottom:

So what bothers me about these commercials? My first reaction was to ask why there was a Black mom serving a White mom a Kool-Aid-type drink made with HFCS in the hopes of recruiting her to The Dark Side. I was also bothered by the “HFCS for President” style of the commercials because anything that pushes opinions like a political campaign is problematic. But more importantly is the fact that the commercials are pushing a product that, despite their present claims, has been a topic of worry for years. In fact, “researchers at the University of Michigan found that men who consume very high levels of fructose elevated their triglyceride level by 32 percent. As triglyceride enters our blood stream, it makes our cells resistant to insulin, making our body’s fat burning and storage system even more sluggish” (link).

While the AMA has concluded that HFCS do not contribute to obesity anymore than other sweeteners, what the sponsors of these commercials are ignoring is something that should be very important to educators.

We teachers know that our students would be better behaved and more willing recipients of information if they did not drink Sunkist Soda in the morning. We know that their diets are partially responsible for their inability to concentrate and their volatile tempers. And what the commercials will not tell you is that foods high in fructose can increase the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure,and hyperactivity or other ADHA-like behavior. In fact, some doctors believe that ADD/ADHD is a result of all of the synthetic chemicals and hormones used in our foods. And HFCS are in every low-quality food sold in stores- foods and drinks like HiC, Twinkes, PopTarts, and more. Please read this article in TIME Magazine. In it, Claudia Wallis writes,

Stevenson found that children in both age groups were significantly more hyperactive when drinking the stuff containing additives. Three-year-olds had a bigger response than the older kids to the lower dose of additives — roughly the same amount of food coloring as in two 2-oz. bags of candy. And, there were big individual differences in sensitivity. While the effects were not nearly so great as to cause full-blown ADHD, Stevenson nonetheless warns that “these adverse effects could affect the child’s ability to benefit from the experience of school.”

Of course, my educated readers here are not shocked; we all know this, right? Then why is the Corn Growers’ Association- an organization that lobby’s for clean living- spearheading a campaign encouraging Americans to indulge in HFCS?

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