The food industry spends upwards of $10 billion annually targeting children. Tried and true methods, such as Happy Meals with toys or cereal with prizes, cartoon and/or movie characters are constantly being promoted. Did you ever notice how little effort is paid towards promoting the actual product/food item? And if the focus is on the food, it is because it has cool shapes or loaded with harmful food coloring to make your kid's yogurt green.
The importance placed on children is not to be understated. Not only do they impact their caregiver's purchasing habits with unfair manipulation like kicking and screaming, they will also one day be buying for themselves and their own children. It is a potent strategy that gets kids to want to buy now and come back for more. Hopefully, for decades, if the food companies get their way. Research suggests that kids under 18 see up to 20 commercials a day for food. This can equate to over 7,000 over an entire year and over 100,000 over 15 years. How do you counteract this kind of enormous influence?
Take a look at some processed food items the next time you are grocery shopping. What you will likely notice pretty quickly is the amount of food label claims that these producers make: all natural, fat-free, made with real fruit, etc. Of course, these often bogus or misleading claims are always prominently displayed on the front of the package while the important nutritional information is never there. It is always in tiny print amidst the chaos of other mandated information.
As it pertains to children-focused marketing, it doesn't take long to notice that the movie character (always on the front) is huge while the actual food product is off to the side or corner, if it is even there at all. It is also important to note that the actual pictures of the food are often doctored or at least photographers spend hours framing the product in the best light possible. Your frozen lasagna is not going to look that good, "fresh" out of the microwave.
While the average person is easily influenced by advertising, at least subconsciously, children are even more susceptible. These marketing ploys and tricks make my life harder as a parent, as I'm sure they do to others as well. And with the rise in childhood obesity, the marketing of fast food and other processed foods is problematic. Ultimately, the health of a child's nutrition is the responsibility of the parent or guardian, but is it too much to ask for the truth? When it comes to the food industry, the answer is probably. These are the same people putting poisonous chemicals in our food, but I digress.
What steps can you take? First, shopping at stores with healthier products like Wild By Nature, Trader Joe's, or Whole Foods can often eliminate the worst of the food choices, so your child doesn't even have the option of poor nutrition. It is also important to understand what they're watching on TV. You can choose advertisement-free programs or stations or focus only on stations that have rules about advertising to children. Finally, it makes sense to talk to your child about proper nutrition and the importance of avoiding processed foods and dangerous chemicals in the food supply. With up to 20 advertisements a day reaching your child, you can never talk to them too much about healthy food.
The importance placed on children is not to be understated. Not only do they impact their caregiver's purchasing habits with unfair manipulation like kicking and screaming, they will also one day be buying for themselves and their own children. It is a potent strategy that gets kids to want to buy now and come back for more. Hopefully, for decades, if the food companies get their way. Research suggests that kids under 18 see up to 20 commercials a day for food. This can equate to over 7,000 over an entire year and over 100,000 over 15 years. How do you counteract this kind of enormous influence?
Take a look at some processed food items the next time you are grocery shopping. What you will likely notice pretty quickly is the amount of food label claims that these producers make: all natural, fat-free, made with real fruit, etc. Of course, these often bogus or misleading claims are always prominently displayed on the front of the package while the important nutritional information is never there. It is always in tiny print amidst the chaos of other mandated information.
As it pertains to children-focused marketing, it doesn't take long to notice that the movie character (always on the front) is huge while the actual food product is off to the side or corner, if it is even there at all. It is also important to note that the actual pictures of the food are often doctored or at least photographers spend hours framing the product in the best light possible. Your frozen lasagna is not going to look that good, "fresh" out of the microwave.
While the average person is easily influenced by advertising, at least subconsciously, children are even more susceptible. These marketing ploys and tricks make my life harder as a parent, as I'm sure they do to others as well. And with the rise in childhood obesity, the marketing of fast food and other processed foods is problematic. Ultimately, the health of a child's nutrition is the responsibility of the parent or guardian, but is it too much to ask for the truth? When it comes to the food industry, the answer is probably. These are the same people putting poisonous chemicals in our food, but I digress.
What steps can you take? First, shopping at stores with healthier products like Wild By Nature, Trader Joe's, or Whole Foods can often eliminate the worst of the food choices, so your child doesn't even have the option of poor nutrition. It is also important to understand what they're watching on TV. You can choose advertisement-free programs or stations or focus only on stations that have rules about advertising to children. Finally, it makes sense to talk to your child about proper nutrition and the importance of avoiding processed foods and dangerous chemicals in the food supply. With up to 20 advertisements a day reaching your child, you can never talk to them too much about healthy food.
About the Author:
Please see my website for more information at food labels or my blog at dangerous food additives
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