Shame, shame, shame. I know that an estimated $6 million dollars for the words “I’m Lovin’ It” is a lot of money and hard to pass up, but Justin Timberlake knows better. At least I thought he did. And what about Beyonce? She got an estimated $50 million dollars, back in 2012, to promote Pepsi products. The paid celebrity endorsement racket is worth a lot of cash.

But a new study shows that of the 57 different food and beverage brands being promoted by celebs- none of them are healthy. The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, describes the deals that stars like Britney Spears, Maroon 5, Timberlake and others popular among teens and young adults, have.

While researcher Marie Bragg’s (of New York University) study didn’t analyze how endorsements influence consumption, she did point to one anecdote that represents the potential influence of celebrities: the rapper Pitbull. She said, “When Dr. Pepper asked Pitbull to endorse, they got 4.6 million advertising impressions, and sales went up 1.7 percent [among Latinos] — despite declining sales in the overall soft drink category.”

Music Celebrity Food Endorsements

It doesn’t take a genius to know that if a celebrity or musician tells kids to do something, there’s a good chance they’re going to do it. In fact, a study published in 2015 found that, “teens and young adults who reported enjoying hit songs that referenced brands of alcohol (like Kesha and her bottle of “Jack”) were more likely to drink compared with those who didn’t like these songs,” reports NPR.

Partly because the Institute of Medicine concluded almost 10 years ago that “television advertising influences children to prefer and request high-calorie and low-nutrient foods and beverages,” the food industry has pledged to cut back on marketing unhealthful foods to children ages 12 and under. And, to everyone’s great surprise, more than a dozen of the largest food companies (including Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Kellogg) have joined the self-policing effort called the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative.

However, there’s been recent pressure on the marketing industry to also cut back their targets directed at teens; experts have pointed to rising obesity rates among their population. “Given that we have a childhood and teen obesity problem in the country, [these endorsements of unhealthy foods] are sending the wrong message to young people, and likely contributing to poor dietary habits,” Marie Bragg told NPR. But the industry doubts the evidence that teens are swayed by endorsements and it is unlikely they will stop attempting to influence their buying habits.

(Check out this grainy mashup of some celebrity food endorsements. It makes a statement…)

Thankfully, there are some who point to the progress made due to promoting more healthful foods. The Partnership for a Healthier America is a group that works with companies who want to make commitments to health and they have launched a fruit and vegetable advertising campaign. They even have celebrity endorsers from Cam Newton, Kristen Bell, Jessica Alba, and Stephen Curry, to name a few.

It’s unlikely that the fruit and veggie campaign will be as big as say, Pepsi or McDonald’s, but it can’t hurt and it definitely can help.

Source: NPR