appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

liveArticle

appConfig

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sectionsV2

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

json

SCMP Reporter

A FAST-FOOD CHAIN  has launched a campaign to help the  United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) provide vaccines to children in developing countries.

A collection of colourful 'rubber wristies' will be available for redemption at McDonald's twice a week, at $2 each with any purchase of a meal from next Monday until May 24.

At the end of the campaign, the US-based restaurant chain will donate  $1.2 million  to  Unicef to carry out its immunisation programme.

The wristies  come in 30 colours and patterns, with 15 inspirational slogans, such as 'fear not', 'aim high' and 'never say never', marked on them.

The fast-food outlet dismissed critics' fears that the campaign would encourage young people to eat too much junk food. It claims its redemption scheme does not require collectors to consume too many of its hamburgers and French fries.

'Three or four different wristies are available on Mondays and Fridays during the one-month redemption period. And a maximum of four wristies can be redeemed per meal,' said a McDonald's Restaurant (Hong Kong) spokesperson. That would mean nine meals in a month to collect a full set of wristies.

But dieticians have advised young people not to eat at McDonald's more than once a week.

'Teenagers need no more than 700 calories a meal. But one McDonald's meal contains more than 800 calories,' said Lorena Cheung, senior dietician at Qualigenics Diabetes Centre.

'A medium-sized soft drink that comes with the meal contains six tablespoons of sugar, which is way too much.

'The whole meal, including the French fries, contains half a tablespoon of sodium [salt] - too much sodium leads to high blood pressure and fluid retention. The meal also lacks vitamins and fibre.

'If you have to eat McDonald's meals, ask for orange juice or low-fat milk instead of the soft drink.'

At the launch ceremony on Tuesday, celebrities Daniel Wu Yin-cho, Karen Mok and Charlie Young Choi-nei demonstrated creative ways of wearing the rainbow wristies.

Unicef's immunisaton campaign has  helped save more than 20 million lives over the past two decades.

Immunisation rates for  six major  preventable diseases - whooping cough,  childhood tuberculosis, tetanus, polio, measles and diphtheria - have risen from under 10 per cent in the 1970s to nearly 75 per cent today.

And polio is on the verge of eradication.

'With the $1.2 million we receive from the wristies charity sale, we will be able to provide complete doses of vaccine for 30,000 children under five years old,' said Maggie Koong, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong Committee for Unicef.



Rainbow of hope