What do Frosted Mini Wheats, Mick Jagger and Superheroes have in common? Hmmmm!!! Ok, I'll cut to the chase.
They have all been around for decades, they are each heavily branded cultural icons, they make loads of money, but most importantly their sustainability and longevity rely directly upon massive marketing campaigns and continual re-visioning. So what exactly is this blog post about, you may ask?
It is about the inherent psychological deception and predatory marketing practices of the American food industry as it sells, among a multitude of other products (that aren't necessarily good for us), breakfast cereal in the guise of health food. And to make matters worse, and much like many of those other drugs which purportedly heal illnesses and afflictions that we don't even know we have (until we see the television commericals), breakfast cereals, and Frosted Mini Wheats in particular, have made very powerful implied claims that a hearty helping of their product will enhance your child's focus. And we all know how many parents out there in television land worry about ADHD and would give anything to improve their child's focus in school, at home and on the playground. In one fell swoop, Kelloggs, by promising that their product will energize as well as enhance childrens' focus, has laid claim to both the health-enhancing and implied medicinal value of Frosted Mini Wheats. Who needs Adderall, Ritalin, fruit and vegetables, when a heaping bowlful of cereal will do.
I remember the first time I saw one of these commericals, and thought to myself as a parent, psychologist and pop culturist, "parents (a primary target of childrens' food advertisements) are going to think this is actually health food and that it is medicinal." And just as Direct to Consumer Advertising (DTCA) of psychotropic and erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs have brought legions of consumers to their physicians with requests for specific medicinal enhancements, parents would now be flocking to the stores to buy their children this miracle substance, convinced they were doing the right thing. And since a good deal of food advertising directed at children is for candy, snacks, sugared cereal and fast food (see Kaiser Family foundation), kids would now be asking their parents specifically for this wonder food and others like it. Witness the transformation of breakfast cereal commericals into public service announcements (PSA's)
Breakfast cereals have grown up with American children since the early part of the 20th century, and with the recognized advertising power of television, their manufacturers have used name and face recognition to pedal their wares. Did you know that George Reeves (aka Superman) advertised Kelloggs Frosted Flakes and that Nabisco, makers of Shredded Wheat, parlayed the fame of Rin Tin Tin to do the same (take a look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wo9VTZXfRI as well as http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xWepMwjWJg). More recently, Kellogs and General Mills battled for the rights to picture Olympic sweetheart swimnmer Michael Phelps on their cereal boxes.
This practice of using named stars to advertise breakfast cereals is dwindling, and in response, manufacturers are jumping on the 'nutritionism" bandwagon. Michael Pollan has written extensively and intelligently on this topic. If we can't entice them to the shelves with the promise of vicarious heroism...and heroes (who are fewer and fewer in number anyway), we'll convince them that this stuff is healthy and medicinal. Wasn't it H.L. Mencken who said "Nobody ever went broke underestimating the taste [and gullibility] of the American public.
Well, Kelloggs got its comeupance, when it was recently sanctioned by the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) for making false claims about the health and [implied] medicinal value of Frosted Mini Wheats. I don't believe that the small financial penalty crippled the giant, or made a dent in the popularity of the brand, but it was a stern warning to those who would prey upon our children...and us.
But what's next, a Black Box Warning on Cocoa Puffs, a voice-over shooting machine gun disqualifiers on Captain Crunch commericals, or perhaps small print on cereal boxes saying something like "if signs of increased focus last for more than four hours, please contact your child's pediatrician"?
Please see the recent posting by PT blogger Christopher Peterson on Michael Pollan's work and nutritionism (https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-good-life/200906/you-cant-savor-nutrient).
