August 4, 2018 — The booming wellness industry is having quite a run in the news this week. It started with a lengthy examination of Gwyneth Paltrow’s business of monetizing empty wellness claims. Then, we learned that UNC is teaching some startling wellness concepts to all of its undergraduates. Cancer, dementia, and obesity (of course) are simply diseases of […]
December 7, 2017 — Here’s a case study for the ages. In the midst of our relentless obesity epidemic, consumers have made a massive shift in attitudes about weight and health. Suddenly, weight management brands found themselves at risk. The biggest brand – Weight Watchers – faced the greatest risk. And now it seems to be emerging in a new, […]
December 3, 2017 — We’re feeling a bit fed up with diets. It seems that the principal use for that word – diet – is to empower people to talk past each other on Twitter. It’s also useful for labeling and dismissing a person. “Oh, she’s part of the diet industry.” That word has so much baggage that registered dietitians (RDs) […]
September 15, 2017 — Does everything have to be about politics? Can’t we just have convivial meals and enjoy the food? Maybe it does and maybe we can’t. So says a growing body of research on motivations for a plant-based style of eating. Openness, Political Interests, Conservativeness, and Conscientiousness Tamara Pfeiler and Boris Egloff describe how these personality traits […]
January 7, 2017 — Have you ever wondered about the real purpose of health claims for food? If so, then have a look at this study to be published in the Journal of Consumer Research. Kelly Haws and colleagues studied consumer beliefs about the health benefits of different foods at different prices. In five experiments, the authors found consistent evidence that people believe more expensive products […]
March 3, 2015 — Things have changed to the point that we’re beginning to wonder, who cares about weight loss anymore? Consumer marketers are coming to understand this fact as they watch trends in consumer attitudes. Supermodel Kate Moss declared in 2009 that “nothing tastes as good as skinny feels.” Now, that phrase evokes such backlash from the public […]
