From the medicalization of food to the gourmetization of medicines: analysis of the advertising campaign that turned an effervescent tablet into a national fever

Abstract

As human longevity increases, a greater concern with eating habits is visible. Furthermore, the number of people who trivialize prescribed diets increases. This context favors the medicalization of food, in which the boundary between food and medicine is blurred. Industries take advantage of this situation to promote several products. This article discusses how the contemporary advertising ecosystem and the cyber advertising techniques are used to naturalize the presence of supplements and medications in the daily diet. We used as a case study a Vietnamese campaign, in which a tablet was positioned as a culinary ingredient. Based on other cases described in the literature, the results found in the Western context are discussed. In the last section, some regulatory challenges are presented, prospects for future research are pointed out, and education is defended as fundamental for the development of citizens who value Public Health as a collective good and a right of all.