In another scary episode of big business having a little too much control, a site that many people trust for medical information — WebMD — is now whoring themselves out for things called “advertorials”. These cleverly-named combinations of advertising and editorial pieces give a soapbox to the highest bidder and come across as legitimate news pieces to those who don’t pay close enough attention.

This was brought to my attention on Twitter which mentioned an advertorial that Kellogg’s ran. In case WebMD comes to their senses and pulls the page down, Kellogg’s writes of “the truth about sugar” and you can see some of their brilliance via this website. Here’s a brief excerpt of what Kellogg’s wants you to know:

A panel of world health experts recently reviewed the scientific evidence and concluded that a high sugar intake is not related to the development of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure or cancer.

Sugar was also not connected to behavioural problems like hyperactivity in children.2-3 As well as this, the panel did emphasise the beneficial role that carbohydrates like sugars play in health.

It should already rouse some suspicion when a peddler of sugary breakfast cereals wants to tell you how sugar isn’t a bad thing, but surely WebMD’s name means there is some shred of credibility, right? Ahh, but one needs to read the fine print where it says “This content is from our sponsor. The sponsor has sole editorial control.” (Emphasis mine.)

Note: the gym is closed today