“We do not want to be involved in advocacy-led studies that so often, and mostly for the right reasons, have been criticized.” —Mars, Inc. after announcing its planned departure from the International Life Sciences Institute The food industry’s trade group, the Grocery Manufacturer’s Association (GMA), has lost at least eight of its corporate members since the summer of 2017. And now Mars, Inc. has left the industry’s science propaganda arm, the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI). Will ILSI suffer the […]

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Editor’s Note: Russ Greene wrote the first draft, and Russell Berger contributed to this piece. Having stopped fitness licensure in its tracks, the CrossFit community is turning its sights to nutritional licensure. Once again, a junk food proxy stands in the way. In the United States, 21 states restrict food speech through nutritional licensure laws. These laws are: 1. Unconstitutional: They violate the First Amendment by restricting freedom of speech. Nutritional licensure laws even have been used to restrict the […]

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Editor’s Note: Derek Fields and Russ Greene collaborated on this piece. Soda Advocacy Groups Exploit the Nonprofit Loophole Wenhua Zhao and Junshi Chen both serve as preeminent public health officials in China. At the same time, Zhao and Chen have led Coca-Cola’s propaganda and lobbying efforts in China. They have fooled not only the Chinese government but also the Western academic journals they’ve published in. They have declared no conflicts of interest while publishing in outlets such as the Journal […]

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In 2015, Anahad O’Connor at the New York Times exposed Coca-Cola’s Global Energy Balance Network, a propaganda effort that used Coke-funded scientists to deny the link between nutrition and obesity. In the wake of that public relations disaster, Coca-Cola promised to be more transparent about the money it sends scientists to “health and well-being scientific research or partnerships.” But Coca-Cola has not kept that promise. Coca-Cola’s “Transparency” website alleges, “in early 2016, we continue to disclose, at six month intervals, […]

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Editor’s Note: We’re pleased to present this guest post by Jason Cooper, RN, co-owner of CrossFit Enoch. Republicans and Democrats alike talk about saving us. They talk about providing “affordable health care.” Recently, President Trump stated, “Obamacare has broken our health-care system. It’s broken. It’s collapsing.” Shortly afterwards, Republicans drafted their grand plan of salvation, The American Health Care Act.  And it wasn’t long ago we heard President Obama proclaim, “If you like your doctor, you will be able to […]

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Last week we examined Malaysia’s Type 2 diabetes epidemic and how the junk food industry has captured the nation’s nutritional and public health institutions. As in China, South Africa, and the United States, the junk food industry appears to have influenced Malaysia’s government through a malignant non-profit called the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI). Malaysian public health official Dr. Tee Siong has also served as ILSI Southeast Asia’s science director for over 20 years. Siong has leveraged his industry and […]

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17.5 percent of adult Malaysians suffer from diabetes. That rate vastly exceeds the U.S.’s 11.5 percent diabetes prevalence. And Malaysia’s diabetes rate has more than doubled since 1996. How did diabetes in Malaysia become such an epidemic? It may help to start by asking what Malaysia has in common with other countries with runaway diabetes problems. Like the cases of China, South Africa and the United States, Malaysia’s public health has been heavily influenced by food and beverage interests. This […]

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Rapidly increasing numbers of Army recruits have failed to meet entry-level fitness standards. This trend occurred even as fewer and fewer Americans met the standards required to become recruits. Last October, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Malcolm Frost warned, “the next existential threat that we have, maybe a generation down the line is … the inability to provide qualified people, volunteers to serve in our military.” Maj. Gen. Frost had good reason for concern: “71 percent of Americans aged 17 to […]

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