Advertising rant

Two posts in one day because I've just seen something to make me really mad.

It's an advert for Slim-Fast. This is a brand of products supposed to make weight loss quick and easy. Originally, they just had milkshakes. The idea was that you would eat one for breakfast, one for lunch and then cook yourself a proper dinner in the evening. Then they started doing soups, bars and drinks as well. I've not tried them and I don't know anyone who has.

The advert has "How will you slim happy?" written in large letters. That seems to me to be implying that you can't be happy until you're slim.

To make things worse, the woman in the advert doesn't look like she needs to lose weight. She doesn't look skinny, but she doesn't look overweight either. She looks normal, healthy and not like someone who needs to resort to diet products.

I'm furious about this advert. It suggests that thinness is required for happiness and it shows someone who doesn't need to lose weight resorting to extreme diet measures.

I don't believe that adverts and media can cause eating disorders, but it can trigger the development of one in a person who is naturally susceptible. I'm not one for protesting about things I see in the media, but I may well make a complaint in this case.