WEEK 4: WEEKLY REFLECTION

As the Research team, we are currently still working on research for our event in collaboration with Ellesse that will take place on the 11th June. We are working alongside the other groups to produce research for them, and to help them finalise details.

I started off by researching more into the other proposed collaboration mentioned by the events team that would be with a gin company that will be available at the event. However, we noticed that this wouldn't be a good message to send to the public as we're promoting a health and wellness orientated editorial and theme, but then also subtly promoting alcoholism which is a trigger for depression. So three of us started on LSN: Global, finding other brands and companies that promote products that are both healthy and suitable to have at a day and evening event. We found research on alternative energy drinks, that go hand-in-hand with both a sportswear brand and conscious consumption:

1. The energy drinks industry is coming under repeat attack, with consumer groups, retailers and governments raising concerns about the negative health impact of its products, especially on children. High levels of caffeine and sugar in category leaders like Monster and Red Bull have been shown to contribute to heart problems and obesity.
2. According to a report by the European Food Safety Authority, 68% of 10–18 year olds and 18% of 3–10-year-olds consume energy drinks. So far in 2018, supermarkets Aldi, Waitrose, Asda and Sainsbury’s have banned the sale of drinks containing more than 150mg of caffeine per litre to under-16s. Now, customers will have to show proof of age to buy such drinks. ‘We take our responsibilities as a retailer seriously and work hard to ensure we get the balance right between offering choice and doing the right thing,’ explains Andy Murray, chief customer officer of Asda.
3. Following these announcements, the UK government has opened an official inquiry into the energy drinks market, focusing particularly on young people. ‘We need to understand how the caffeine and sugar in energy drinks might cause negative health outcomes,’ says Norman Lamb MP, chair of the Science and Technology Committee. ‘Some retailers have chosen to ban their sale and some have not. Should it be for retailers to decide which products can be sold on health grounds?’

This research led onto looking into CBD oil, after Kim Kardashian-West hosted a CBD themed baby shower, which also would fit in with our event of mindfullness.

1. Why do you think cannabis is increasingly important to women? Some of the first articles we ever wrote on CBD were with Jessica Assaf [founder of Cannabis Feminist] around her idea that this was going to be a billion-dollar, women-led industry. Women are using cannabis to solve health problems for themselves and their families that Western medicine hasn’t resolved. There’s definitely an empowerment perspective, whether that’s around taking healthcare into your own hands or your sense of autonomy as a woman. I know that women often feel shut off from science. A lot of clinical tests are still not done on women, so we don’t really know the effect that drugs can have on our bodies. As Jessica says: ‘Why should getting a drug be so easy? Why should that be our default?’ And I think women agree that it shouldn’t. They don’t want to be on antidepressants for the rest of their lives or to put their children on Ritalin.
2. How do you think the CBD industry will evolve in the future? I think the medical industry is going to dig its heels in and the wellness industry is going to rally round. At some point big brands, whether it be Coca-Cola, Johnson & Johnson or Procter & Gamble, will get involved because there’s a lot of money to be made. In turn, there will need to be more scientific research into it – more studies on CBD versus the whole plant, for example. Many of the studies that do exist are about smoking cannabis that contains THC, and I think that’s probably one of the least healthy ways to get CBD into your body. As a result, I predict that there will be a lot of people in the future who do not necessarily associate CBD with smoking marijuana at all.

Once we agreed as a group that it would wise to have another sponsor that would promote healthy consumption, we started compiling a list of possible brands and their contact details that the events team could use to find a more suitable sponsor.

Healthy and more Ethical Brands.