Saturday, September 27, 2008
Unit 4 post
The paper examined the use of social marketing to advance public health. And talked about ways to target population with the fastest and easiest way becoming the "social marketing" approach. Big companies promote a specific product or big insurance companies promote their latest insurance plan to create a healthier environment for people. However, the question i ask myself always is that their true intention, is this really a better plan than what i have, is this product going to make me feel better. The answer is sometimes yes and sometimes no. I believe that companies use the fact the society is in need in anyway to feel better, to look younger, to look fit and slim, to reduce cholesterol, to get ride of body fats and promote products and medication that might have side effect that might worsen their health, for the companies profit. All around me i see commercials that talks about important health issues like obesity for examples and provide ways, and programs to help reduce obesity and steps to really talk care of oneself. However, on the other side i see cigarettes, alcohol and beer being promoted as well by big companies, and people get overwhelmed and do in fact start using these mentioned above as a way to get their mind off of real live problems, smoke because its cool like teenager might think. So i believe that we really need to educate people about health care issues before we overwhelm them with products and plans that might help or might not help their lives.
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7 comments:
Hi Cherestina,
I have a question related to your statement, "companies use the fact that society is in need of anyway to...reduce cholesterol..." Your sentence included a serial with many non-health focused examples but then "reduce cholesterol" was also included. I think this is a health concious option. Would companies that develop, make, or promote products that help to reduce cholesterol not be advancing public health??
Jenna
People falling back on the very things that they were told not to be involved with. Kind of brings me back to my childhood and other kids I remember :-)
-the behavior, not the substances
I can't say that I agree with your idea on how companies need to educate before overwhelming people with products. The idea in itself is sometimes difficult for some to understand or adhere to. These products, hopefully clarified and explained to the individual by a healthcare provider, are a means for people to improve their chances of success. I understand how 10 different things claiming to do the same things can be mind boggling, but that is where the the roles of healthcare providers come into play and not a total reliance on TV commercials.
I agree with you that today, we are saturated with advertisements about health. Regarding your comment that people will do anything to get thinner and look younger, I think it also has to do with what people think "healthy" is. Its OK to look 50 when you're 50, but somehow, we believe that you need to look younger. Also, with what we see on TV and in Hollywood, people think that girls need to be skinny, but this isn't true either. So as long as we are educating people on how to achieve health, we should at least tell them what health actually is.
Hey Cherestina,
I completely agree with your statement on how "we really need to educate people about health care issues before we overwhelm them with products." I firmly believe it is imperative to modify attitudes and behaviors of people through providing information and raising awareness, not through the consumption of products. Social marketing tactics have to be used carefully and with the intention of educating people about a particular health issue, not with the intention of endorsing a particular product or service.
I agree with your comment that advertising is making people buy products that is not necessary for them and it infulences young generation to eat these products to look fit and slim. Most of the people try to buy these products that assures them to look younger which is not neccessary for them to be using it in the first place.
Yes indeed nowdays people especially the young ones are confused about the mixed messages that they get from the media and the advertisements. They see programs which try to eliminate the problems of alcohol and tobacco while at the same time, they see ads promting the use of those same things. Programs need to be developed in order to target those particular teenage groups.
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