Canesten, the intimate health brand expert, has launched a new iteration of the ‘Vagina Academy’ - its global brand social purpose platform to help set people free from shame and discomfort - in the UK with ‘The Truth, Undressed’, an education-at-scale programme showcasing the truth about vulval and vaginal anatomy and health.‘The Truth, Undressed’ teaches the reality of how our bodies look and behave, with unprecedented access to the naked truth, helping young people become more informed and better armed to spot and address concerns to their own intimate health.&nbsp;The programme includes a dedicated educational microsite and social media awareness videos created by Canesten, plus free, comprehensive lesson plans that have been developed in collaboration with national body The PSHE Association, which teaches 11–18 year olds about vulval and vaginal anatomy and health.Available for the first time as a UK national curriculum resource, the new content includes accurate, diverse and non-sexualised photography of vulvas, pubic hair and true-to-life depictions of vaginal discharge intended to break down stereotypes and stigma and free people from shame and discomfort.The collection of photographs were captured by photographer Sophie Mayanne, best known for shooting Mothercare’s award-winning ‘Beautiful, isn’t she?’ campaign and personal project ‘Behind the Scars’.Canesten’s <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://www.TruthUndressed.co.uk" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">www.TruthUndressed.co.uk</a> contains informative editorial articles, photography and illustrations of vulvas and vaginal discharge that allows young people to access reliable, trustworthy and affirming knowledge about intimate health. It also features members of the public giving real descriptions of their bodies and experiences, to reassure and inform readers of the variety of experiences that owning a vagina brings.&nbsp;These educational materials are being launched in response to recent research that revealed only 6%<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="#_ftn1" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">[1]</a> of UK women (aged 18-24) found out about intimate health conditions through school and university education and just under two thirds1 (60%) only found out about vaginal infections when they first experienced them.Research also revealed that 46<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="#_ftn2" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">[2]</a> of UK women are worried about the appearance of their vulva and 67%2 admitted they would change something about it if they could. This can lead to feelings of shame, with over half (55%2) admitting that they avoided going to seek medical help due to feeling embarrassed to discuss the issue or show their vulva.Short form social video ads have been developed by Canesten to drive traffic to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://www.TruthUndressed.co.uk" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">www.TruthUndressed.co.uk</a>, by spreading awareness of the missing information around vaginas and vulvas and its potential consequences. On TikTok, the ads show what can happen when people can’t find answers to their questions, or worse still, harmful misinformation. On Instagram, the ads use common visual metaphors for vaginas, vulvas and pubic hair to drive home the ways that nothing compares to reality when you’re trying to learn. All social elements have been developed to respect the rules and regulations of the platforms.Daria Costantini, Brand Lead for Canesten, Bayer Consumer Health UK said: “The truth of the female anatomy is dressed up in a societal culture of sex and defined as explicit by default. We live in a world where porn is readily available on the internet, yet many young people don’t know the first thing about what kinds of infections there are or even what the vulva is supposed to look like.“We hope that through this programme we can start to move imagery of real vulvas away from a sexualised depiction and into an informative, educational space to equip young people with the essential information they need to better understand their bodies as well as normalise conversations.”Bayer Canesten partnered with AnalogFolk London to develop and execute the core concept, strategy and creative for ‘The Truth, Undressed’. The vulva and discharge stills, and portraits accompanying the campaign were produced by Untold Fable, including diverse casting, photographers and intimacy coordination.‘The Truth, Undressed’ campaign is part of Vagina Academy, the global education activation Canesten and AnalogFolk first launched in February 2021 in pilot market Brazil with the campaign Intensivão da PPK, the world’s first digital school of intimate health. Intensiavão da PPK was launched on TikTok where its videos were viewed 43 million times and reached over 200K subscribers, equating to filling 17.5K real-life classrooms. Vagina Academy has since rolled out with hyper-local execution in Italy and Australia.Amandine Fabian, Creative Director, AnalogFolk London said: “No one should feel ashamed of having a vulva or a vagina or just saying these words, yet a lot of women find it hard to even talk about vulval and vaginal health issues with their doctors. That’s why we’ve created The Truth, Undressed: to cast shame and taboo aside. We used a bold look and feel and real photography that inspire self-confidence and empowerment to send one message across: vulvas and vaginas are just like any other part of the human body. The Truth, Undressed goes beyond a simple advertising campaign — it’s a shift in mindset.”The teaching materials created by The PSHE Association in collaboration with Canesten include four age-appropriate lesson plans for key stages 3-5 and will be available to teachers for use in all UK secondary schools from 11 July 2022. Teachers&nbsp;have the option of choosing versions of lesson resources with photography, realistic illustrations, or without imagery. A supporting teacher guidance document on whether and how to use these visual resources is also provided.Liz Laming, The PSHE Association says: “The lesson plans will support schools to teach this important health topic effectively and appropriately. Until now, it has been difficult for young people to learn the facts about their bodies and understand vulval and vaginal health when historically the vast majority of images of vulvas represented in porn and other forms of media and popular culture have been both over-sexualised and depicting a societally ‘perfect’ body which is not representative of reality.”As part of the teaching materials launch, The PSHE Association enlisted the support of two academics, Dr Ester McGeeney and Dr Elly Hanson; specialists in youth centred research on relationships and sexualities, to help develop the educational programme.&nbsp;Clinical Psychologist, Dr Elly Hanson said: “Research shows that negative feelings and inaccurate understandings about the vulva and vagina are common and can have hugely detrimental consequences especially for girls and women. Given this, it is vital that young people are supported with education that increases their understanding and helps them take an affirmative approach to their bodies.”<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://analogfolk.com/work/the-truth-undressed" tt-mode="url" class="" title="" download="">Read more about The Truth, Undressed here</a><hr><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="#_ftnref1" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">[1]</a> 1,600 women, Canesten WIH Path to Purchase study, conducted by Truth, 2019<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="#_ftnref2" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">[2]</a> Survey of 1,000 UK women (aged 18-24) – ‘Different Is Normal’ research by Canesten and sexual health charity Brook, conducted by 3GEM October 2020

Canesten launches 'The Truth, Undressed' stripping away shame through unprecedented education

Created by independent global digital creative agency AnalogFolk London, FrappéLists aim to provide Gen-Z with a soundtrack for their Frappé loving summer of freedom, while giving a huge platform to unsigned music artists that need it after the break in performances after Covid-19.FrappéLists was born from insight that this is the UK’s first ‘restriction free’ summer for two years. Young and old alike are in a mindset to make up for lost time by seizing each and every day and making the most of it. Costa Coffee aims to get people outside with a Frappé in hand and a curated playlist in their ears, as the perfect trigger point for a day of summer enjoyment.Costa Coffee recruited five up-and-coming UK artists; VIC @hellovicco; Baby Eleanor @_babyeleanor; Yasmin Hass @yasminhasss; Matilda Cole @matildaacole; and Ariane V @arianev to create exclusive day-long playlists, inspired by the new Frappé range. The artists will also be performing in various Costa Coffee sponsored music events around the country, including Birmingham and Brighton.The FrappéLists have been activated in a series of videos directed by celebrated music video director Jake Jelicich (Niall Horen, Dua Lipa, James Bay) which are playing out now across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok, scannable fly-posters and live performances across the UK. All live collateral - posters, stickers on drinks, screens and even temporary tattoos - are scannable, pointing people towards the exclusive playlists.The FrappéLists can also be found on Spotify <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://spoti.fi/3xTjTAb" tt-mode="url" class="0" title="0" download="0">https://spoti.fi/3xTjTAb</a> and by scanning the Spotify code in Costa Coffee stores.Production was handled by AnalogFolk Group’s production arm Untold Fable.Kirstey Elston, Costa Coffee Marketing Director for UK &amp;amp; Ireland says: “Our gen-z audience have been eagerly waiting to experience a summer since 2019 and Costa Coffee’s biggest ever summer drinks menu is here to help bring some ‘Frappé-ness’! This campaign leverages the power of music, digital and social working together, and has created a fun experience to form a soundtrack for this summer, alongside our wide choice of amazing cold drinks across all of our platforms.”Colin Byrne, Executive Creative Director, AnalogFolk London says: “FrappéLists is a social-first activation that has spread to the real world, by utilising music and the people that make it at a grassroots level. Costa Coffee is providing an unprecedented platform for young British music, while giving gen-z the soundtrack they deserve this summer. By working with Spotify and scannable codes, we’ve made every piece of content feel more digital, adding real value, wherever it appears in the customer journey.”

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Canesten launches 'The Truth, Undressed' stripping away shame through unprecedented education

Costa Coffee launches FrappéLists providing Gen-Z with the soundtrack to their summer