McDonald’s stops sending to schools man who says he lost much weight eating only at McDonald’s, including Big Macs and fries

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McDonald’s has stopped “giving nutrition advice to students in schools, pulling back on a program that critics said was a subtle form of fast-food marketing that could imperil kids’ health and understanding of nutrition,” Roberto Ferdman reports for The Washington Post.

The company had been sending to schools “a middle-aged teacher from Iowa who came to fame after claiming to have lost almost 60 pounds eating only McDonald’s,” including Big Macs and french fries, Ferdman writes.

“McDonald’s said in a statement this week that Cisna stopped those visits last fall, after a Washington Post article highlighted how McDonald’s used its relationship with local schools and teachers’ associations to get its message in front of students. . . . McDonald’s had long defended the practice, saying that Cisna’s presentation was about choice, not about eating McDonald’s. But critics argued it amounted to little more than a veiled attempt to woo customers at a young and impressionable age.”