"To new victories in work and sport! "

The Russian government just approved a program called “Creating a Healthy Way of Life”.

Around this original project, an ambitious communication campaign will be launched, raising awareness about the importance of eating well, practicing sports on a regular basis, and avoiding anything that could damage your health. 

"To new victories in work and sport! "

But this program also implies modifying the national legislation on cigarettes, alcohol and junk food, and indirectly establishing a stricter framework of control on people’s behaviours and tastes. In fact, the Russian government hopes that regular physical exercise will eventually replace abusive consumption of alcohol and other substances meant to release stress.

The goal to reach is 45% Russian citizens having a healthy way of life in 2019, and even up to 65% in 2060. It encourages citizens to adopt a “responsible approach to health”. 

The reactions in Russian social networks are quite diverse: some bloggers approve the initiative, saying that it’s a good incentive for those who wouldn’t start doing sport by themselves. Others, like the popular blogger Masterok, wonder how they could possibly afford buying quality food, as the average salary is three times smaller than a shopping basket of healthy aliments… Same for the infrastructure: it’s kinda missing.

There’s just one little disturbing detail: since all the dictatorships we’ve known for the past century, we could easily notice that sport turns out to be an efficient mean of control on a population.So how come the Russian governement suddenly started to care so much about  its citizens' nutrition?