Category Archives: Food

A local council takes on fast food: is this the future for improving public health?

May 16, 2012 – 6:17 pm

In case you missed it, there has been an interesting development for public health at Darebin in northern Melbourne – the local council is reportedly considering hiking rates for fast food chains. It’s part of a wider move in Victoria to improve public health through local government. In the article below, Jane Martin, Executive Manager of [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in public health | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

A wrap of recent news on McDonald’s, marketing and health (and some parallel universes)

May 14, 2012 – 7:28 pm

When it comes to food and health, it seems that we are living in parallel universes. In one universe, there is a new report from The Institute of Medicine in the US, Accelerating Progress in Obesity Prevention: Solving the Weight of the Nation, urging governments and decision makers (including those in the private sector) “to [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in child health, health and medical research, obesity, public health | Tagged , , , , | Comments (3)

The latest wrap of Croakey’s coverage of public health, health reform and the works

April 10, 2012 – 8:37 pm

Croakey readers are welcome to sign up for (rather irregular) summaries of posts. If you’d like to join the mailing list, please send your email or leave it below. Here is the latest compilation, covering articles posted since the beginning of the year. The latest readership figures are now also available, showing that more than 39,000 [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in alcohol, general practice, Indigenous health, Media-related issues, Naked Doctor, physical activity, private health insurance, public health, rural and remote health, social determinants of health, social media and healthcare, The Conversation, tobacco control, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

McDonald’s programming gets roasted

April 3, 2012 – 6:17 pm

According to The Australian: “The McDonald’s advertiser-funded program on Seven won its 9.30pm timeslot last night with an average audience of 761,000. The fast food giant paid for“McDonald’s Get Grilled” to be produced by independent house WTFN and Seven scheduled the show despite it being a thinly-veiled advertisement…” According to Mumbrella: “A show about and [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in health & medical marketing, Media-related issues, obesity, public health | Tagged , , , | Comments (2)

Behind the alarming headlines about sleeping pills and red meat

March 14, 2012 – 8:08 pm

For those who have been alarmed by recent headlines about the dangers of sleeping pills and red meat, below are links to some further analyses that are worth reading, courtesy of Media Doctor Australia and the NHS Behind the Headlines service. (Perhaps every GP, hospital and other health service waiting room should advertise these websites [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in cancer, cardiovascular disease, health and medical research, Media Doctor Australia, Media-related issues, pharmaceutical industry | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

A proposal for busting unhealthy workplaces

February 16, 2012 – 4:20 pm

While the previous post makes a suggestion for how the Federal Government could ensure healthier, fairer food policy, in the article below health policy consultant Margo Saunders suggests workplaces (including government departments) could be doing more to promote good health. She suggests that we need a bit of online activism, in the vein of The [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in chronic diseases, obesity, occupational health, public health | Tagged , | Comments (2)

Why Federal Cabinet should include a Minister for Food

February 16, 2012 – 3:49 pm

Food policy is such an important – and contested – space that we should have a Food Minister, in Cabinet, according to Michael Moore, CEO of the Public Health Association of Australia, and Associate Professor Heather Yeatman of the School of Health Sciences at the University of Wollongong. *** Making the case for a Ministry for Food Michael [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in environmental health, Health inequalities, health reform, public health | Tagged , , | Comments (1)

Junk food promotions by Foxtel: it’s just not cricket

January 31, 2012 – 11:11 am

Public health advocate Professor Mike Daube writes: The finals this weekend of the KFC T20 Big Bash could have been better (especially if the Perth Scorchers had won), but the cricket was lively and would have made exciting viewing for many children as they watched all the KFC promos, as well as seeing their sporting [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in child health, Media-related issues, public health, Uncategorized | Comments (0)

Healthy Weight Week: what is it really promoting?

January 20, 2012 – 1:01 pm

Healthy Weight Week is due to kick off on Sunday. But Professor Mike Daube, Director of the Public Health Advocacy Institute at Curtin University, wonders whose interests are really being served by this initiative. *** What have Coco Pops and Froot Loops got to do with healthy weight? Mike Daube writes: National Healthy Weight Week [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in conflicts of interest, obesity, public health | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

A rather large wrap of recent Croakey articles: public health, health reform, media coverage of health and more

January 11, 2012 – 10:25 am

As previously mentioned, Croakey readers are welcome to sign up for (rather irregular) summaries of posts. If you’d like to join the mailing list, please send your email or leave it below. Here is the latest compilation, covering from 6 October – December 23, 2011. The latest readership figures are now also available, showing that [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in abortion, alcohol, cancer, child health, childbirth and maternity services, climate change, complementary medicines, conflicts of interest, consumer health information, death and dying, dental care, evidence-based issues, global health, health and medical research, health financing and costs, Health inequalities, health reform, health workforce, Hospitals, Indigenous health, infectious diseases, Media Doctor Australia, Medicare Locals, mental health, MyHospitals website, obesity, pain, palliative care, pharmacy, physical activity, prevention, primary health care, public health, quality and safety of health care, rural and remote health, SensaSlim, social determinants of health, social media and healthcare, TGA, The Conversation, tobacco control, vaccination, vaccines, WHO | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)