They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This probably goes double for graphic, gross-out pics, which is why the New York City Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene decided to use them to dissuade New Yorkers from “Pouring on the Pounds.”

New Campaign Asks New Yorkers if They’re “Pouring On the Pounds”

Health Department encourages consumers to choose beverages with less sugar

August 31, 2009 – It’s hard to overeat without noticing it. By contrast, soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages can sneak up on you, adding hundreds of calories to your diet each day without ever filling you up. In a new effort to highlight the health impact of sweetened drinks, the Health Department is confronting New Yorkers with a bold question: Are you pouring on the pounds? The agency’s new public-awareness campaign, which includes posters in the subway system and a multilingual Health Bulletin, goes live today and will run for three months.

The campaign’s signature image – in which a bottle of soda, “sports” drink or sweetened iced tea turns to a blob of fat as it reaches the glass – is s a stark reminder of how these products can lead to obesity and related health problems. The ads urge New Yorkers to cut back on sugary beverages and quench their thirst with water, seltzer or low-fat milk instead.

The ad is below the fold.  Warning: it isn’t… very… appetizing.  In fact, it’s pretty gross.

Actors have it rough sometimes!  Ewwwwww….

At any rate, I’ll be curious to see what effect – if any – this has on soda consumption in NYC.  Judging from some comments I’ve seen online, it’s certainly provoking strong (mostly negative) reactions, but time will tell…

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