Commentary on Paula Dean's new direction
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Yes, people manage diabetes, and some really disciplined people wean themselves off medication with a regimen of diet and exercise, but that's a long, long way from what most of us consider "moderation," which usually involves saying no to a second slice of cake. Besides, a diabetic never gets a day off.
The life of a diabetic is somewhat less than swell — but Novo Nordisk is selling swell, alongside drug companies that promise to medicate away depression, gas, incontinence, clogged arteries and fibromyalgia. According to the Congressional Budget Office, pharmaceutical companies spent $4.7 billion on direct-to-consumer advertising in 2008; the United States has the dubious distinction of being one of only two countries in the world to allow such advertising, New Zealand being the other.
Support and encouragement is one thing, but what we're being sold is magical thinking. In the battle between healthcare reality and fantasy, Paula Deen is small potatoes (steamed, skins on, no butter), but what she represents matters: another attempt to market immortality to a culture that's particularly in love with misbehaving, followed by an easy fix.
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