Rudd Sound Bites

But it Looked so Good in the Picture…

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

While procrastinating during finals time, I recently came across a Rolling Stone article that highlighted an honest and somewhat horrifying website. The idea is simple: at Fast Food: Ads vs. Reality, there is a collection of side-by-side photos comparing the glossy ads selling fast food products and the often greasy, unappetizing reality. This site does a painfully good job capturing both the sometimes nauseating quality of fast food, and the gap between the food industry’s presentation of its products and what consumers actually find on their plates. It’s really compelling to see the misrepresentation up close and (far too) personal. PS: the Arby’s Beef & Chedder is my personal (least) favorite.

Talking the fat talk

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

How often do you complain about your weight or body with your friends? A new study suggests that your answer to this question may be different depending on your gender. A recent article summarizes research demonstrating the fact that groups of women are likely to engage in “fat talk,” a term describing negative discussions of body shape and size. While this phenomenon is certainly not limited exclusively to women, its easier to imagine a group of women in the bathroom complaining about not being able to fit into their “skinny jeans” than it is to picture the equivalent scene for men.

Don't worry, it's not "diet"

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

I recently came across a story on Adrants (a sometimes snarky blog about the state of the advertising industry) on the motivation behind the marketing campaign for the product Coke Zero. Apparently, the name “coke zero” was selected as part of a major push to appeal to male customers.  Coke Zero is essentially a new version of diet coke--it is based on the same formulation as regular Coke and tastes more like the original. But  why the “zero” rather than the clearer “diet” or even “lite” or “low carb?” Apparently, Coke branders realized that men often shy away from all things clearly labeled “diet,” but would feel comfortable with a  product with the more benign “zero” branding. To reinforce this, ads note that the product is “calorie-free” rather than diet, and a fake blog was even launched to promote the “zero lifestyle.”

Weight Stigma Overrides Group Inclusion

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

I recently attended the annual meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, which is the major conference for the fields of social and personality psychology. While there were many interesting talks and poster sessions, one presentation stood out as particularly relevant to the work taking place at the Rudd Center. Dr. John Pryor described research he had recently conducted at Illinois State University on how obese individuals are treated differently in groups by their normal-weight peers.

Boobs vs. “Moobs”: Gender Differences in Plastic Surgery

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Two recent articles in British newspapers highlight the fact that while liposuction surgeries are up for both genders, men and women may focus on different areas. An article in The Independent notes that the demand for liposuction rose by close to 90% in 2006. Women made up the bulk of these patients—there were 3,500 female cases as compared with 500 men. Doctors interviewed in the article suspected that the boom was due to the conflicting forces that women encounter, and that the combination of a toxic food environment on the one hand and intense pressure to be thin on the other results in women increasingly choosing to go under the knife. 

Catcher in the White, Wheat or Rye

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Over the past few months, I’ve written about the ways in which the obesity epidemic may affect men and women differently, and how gender stereotypes regarding what and how much to eat may negatively affect both sexes. Yet, studies and articles on how gender and stereotyping impact nutritional choices have largely ignored the younger generations, and we know very little about how the development of food-related stereotypes takes shape. When and how do girls come to believe they shouldn’t order dessert? When and how do boys learn that meat is a “manly” food? I think we need to know more about how children and teenagers come to believe, reinforce, and internalize gender stereotypes in the world of eating. A key element in the fight against obesity may be a better understanding of how young men and women understand their food environment, and how they begin to pick up on stereotypes about what is expected of them and what habits are considered healthy.

The food industry and comically real headlines

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

A recent news story has done more to highlight the often comical shortcomings of the food industry more effectively than we as advocates can sometimes hope to do. To better stress this point, look at the following headlines:

• Grapes "Big Hit" at Area Picnic
• Raid on Nacho-Supremacist Compound Uncovers Guacamole-Making Materials
• Gasoline Still Inexplicably Cheaper Than Milk
• Woman Finds Guacamole "Not Avacadoey Enough," Sues Kraft

In the list above, can you pick the real headline out from several parody articles from The Onion?

The False Memory Diet

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Last week, respected memory researcher Dr. Elizabeth Loftus came to speak at Rutgers, where I am currently enrolled as a social psychology graduate student. I was eager for the opportunity to hear one of the field’s most eminent scholars give a talk, but I didn’t anticipate that her discussion would touch on themes relevant to work at the Rudd Center.

Dr. Loftus is well-known for her work on false memories and eyewitness testimony. Along with her colleagues, she has demonstrated that false memories can be suggested for a variety of events, from getting lost in the mall as a child to more extreme experiences such as being harassed by cartoon character mascots at Disneyland. This type of work does not have obvious implications for the obesity and food policy fields, yet Dr. Loftus described more recent studies relating to nutrition and food preferences. 

Stereotype of more than one month

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Unfortunately, this weekend I saw the new Dane Cook/Jessica Simpson movie Employee of the Month. I say “unfortunately” for many reasons (the predictable plot line, the dull acting, the flat jokes, etc) most of which I should have expected. However, one negative element of the movie caught me off guard—the repeated and tasteless mocking of overweight individuals in the form of particularly un-funny “fat jokes.” A heavy security guard is told to go “eat his way through a snack cart,” an overweight administrator is bribed into giving away confidential personnel information in exchange for chocolate, etc.

A gender gap in weight stigma?

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Weight bias may affect women more negatively than men, according to a recent article. While weight-related stigma and health problems are difficult for anyone to bear, the article points out that overweight women face more overall stigmatization (which also begins at an earlier age), more professional discrimination, more bias from healthcare professionals (see a recent post on this topic here), and receive fewer educational grants and scholarships.

This article raises many questions, and clearly, more work is needed to determine the extent to which weight stigma differentially penalizes women. However, it is also important to consider the reasons why this may be the case. Why might anti-fat biases be more damaging for women than for men?

Bias in the exam room

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Recently, a friend of mine decided to make a concerted effort to eat healthier and get physically active. Like many who embark on a new diet or exercise plan, he consulted his doctor for information about healthy ways achieve and maintain weight loss. And unfortunately, like many others, his experience was less helpful and motivational than he’d expected, and certainly than it should have been.

A (Lean) Meat and (Organic) Potatoes Guy

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

While flipping through Us Weekly magazine the other day (only while I was in line at the supermarket, I swear…) I noticed an article promoting “weight loss month” on the show Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.  I’m interested to see the how the show will pitch its “weight loss boot camp,” especially because ads promise the results will be “dramatic,” complete with unveilings of slimmer Straight Guys and a cheering studio audience. But what really caught my attention in the article was one reformed fast-food addict’s recollection of his earlier attitude towards fruit and vegetable consumption; in his worlds, “If someone said ‘health food,’ I’d think grass and rocks.”

Sweating+

by Corinne Moss-Racusin

Recently, I purchased a new computer to aid my return to long nights in the library as an incoming social psychology graduate student. As part of a promotion targeting students, my new Mac laptop came with a free iPod Nano. I’ve noticed ads touting Nike+, the recent collaboration of Nike and Apple. This technology allows users to track their runs and synch up to recorded workouts and guided feedback. Eager to give it a try, I purchased the sports kit and the compatible sneakers (I needed a new pair anyway) and set out on my first run.