Big Food & the Anti-Diet Movement: A Deep-Dive on The Latest Dietitian Hit Piece from The Washington Post

My guest today is Bonnie Taub-Dix, MA, RDN, CDN, award-winning author of, Read It Before You Eat It – Taking You from Label to Table, and creator of the website and blog called, BetterThanDieting.com.  Bonnie is a media personality, spokesperson, motivational speaker, journalist, and corporate and brand consultant whose messages are laced with her culinary passion as a foodie, her credible guidance as an advisor and her wit and wisdom as a mom. Bonnie brings 30+ years of industry experience to this conversation, along with her vast knowledge of the dietetics profession and media. 

We discuss: 

• The biased premise of the latest dietitian hit piece in The Washington Post,  which is propagates the myth that dietitians and Big Food are colluding to keep Americans obese and sick
• What is “Big Food:” Why ignoring its impact on the American and global  food system is ignorant and misguided
• The anti-diet movement: What’s intended by practitioners who identify as “anti-diet,” and the perception vs. reality of this term on social media
• Social media vs. real life practice: Given that Gen Z uses social media search engines as their primary method of seeking information, do practitioners have even greater responsibility to creatively  deliver credible, evidence-information online in ways that are optimized for virality?  
• What it means to be an expert with influence vs. an influencer: How dietitians are distinctly different from influencers in the digital & social media space, and how dietitians might rethink their approach to marketing and media in 2024+
• The authors’ negative bias towards dietitians:: Myth-busting key points made in this article, including dietitians being compensated by Big Food; General Mills’ #derailtheshame campaign (and the pros and cons of this marketing alignment); keywords that indicate bias in media, and how to know when you’re reading/watching/listening to something with a clearly biased point of view on scientific topics

Thanks for listening to The Business of Wellness with Jaclyn London, MS, RD, CDN. 

🎙️Follow The Business of Wellness on Apple Podcasts & leave a 5-star rating & review 

🎙️Hire me to consult before you invest in or get to work on that better-for-you product  

🎙️Follow me @jaclynlondonrd

 

**Advice provided on this podcast should not replace medical advice provided by your physician.