Household Income, Food Marketing and Geographic Location Are 3 Factors That Have Been Identified by Australian Researchers That Are Potentially Influencing Food Choices in Australian Homes.

Childhood obesity is a condition involving the excessive accumulation of body fat that has negative effect on the health of the young individual. It is a worldwide epidemic affecting 1 in 4 Australian children (AIHW, 2012). There are many factors that could lead to a child becoming obese, including, the general lifestyle of their family (Diet and physical activity), their communities attitude towards health and wellbeing as well as their own knowledge on healthy habits. Advertising for healthy living in Australia is vital to get the message out to parents and children of how important healthy habits are. Campaigns such as 2 Fruit & 5 Veg and the Crunch & Sip programs in primary school come across in a way that is easy for kids to understand

They also noticed that people who are facing the food insecurity problem in Australia were 1.6% of women and 1.9% of men based on one of the indigenous Australians study. The longterm impacts of food insecurity can lead to obesity especially in women.The main reason is due to purchasing cheap quality foods and high fat content foods and unavailability of nutritious foods with the normal price range for low income population groups (Drewnoski and Spensor 2004). A research study noticed that there is much difference between the cost of healthy foods and unhealthy foods based on the survey in 34 victorian supermarkets. Another interesting fact that was revealed was 40 % of the income is required for a family to consume nutritional food in their everyday diet (Palermo et al. 2008). Another survey during 1998-2004 across 56 stores in Queensland revealed the cost of Healthy Food Basket (HFAB) has increased above Consumer Price Index which means high level nutritional food became more expensive when compared to less nutrition foods ( Harrison et al. 2007).The common fact that was revealed by both the studies was food became expensive for low population groups like indegnous people to maintain a healthy

Children are targeted in these ads they try to draw their attention by making the ads fun, and by using cool phrases. Moss proposes and “He explained how he would deploy strategic storytelling in the ad campaign for his snack, using a key phrase that had been developed with much calculations:” Eat’ Em Like Junk Food’ (494).This proves that ads plays a role in promoting food that are unhealthy and is putting children 's health at risk for obesity. To sum it up, children are exposed to high amount of unhealthy food advertisements which affects young children health and food choices. Therefore, the government needs to intervene and stopping the advertisement of unhealthy eating and start advertising healthier foods.

In food journalist Tamar Haspel’s intriguing Washington Post article, “Is nutritious food really pricier..?” , Haspel unveils the debate on the shocking case of nutritious consumables’ slight inflation to malnutritious choices. Based on that debate, spawned an ever so controversial scenario. That of which being the common consumers impulsive judgments on the selection of unhealthy foods, as opposed to more healthy alternatives. Haspel also provides the reader with several facts of how healthy foods are much costlier than unhealthy eats.

The trend within the Australian food industry seems to attempt to be competitive price-wise. Furthermore, expanded their industry to other sectors including petrol, merchandise and liquor. The food industry looks to what people want and stocks it accordingly. By branching out, those in the food industry are able to cover more segments and increase their profitability in a wider sense. Aldi’s competitive environment in Australia consists of 5 firms, the two major competitor being Woolworths and Coles.

Food insecurities have a huge factor in a person’s health and well-being. It can act as a barrier to optimal levels of health. Food insecurities are present in the United States due to the unequal access that is present in the country. Whether there is a lack of healthy food that is accessible to that community or the healthy food that is available is not affordable. Many of the foods that are beneficial for people are not always the most affordable. It can turn into a vicious cycle of wanting to provide the healthiest food possible for the household, which can lead to spending more money, and can ultimately result in the inability to provide any type of healthy foods for the household. As a result, the existence of food insecurities leads

The income of Australian individuals and families is immeasurably affecting their eating habits which is then dramatically impacting upon their overall health and wellbeing. Diet quality follows a socioeconomic gradient, meaning, the more affluent society of Australia are overall healthier and consume a higher quality, lower energy dense diet then those of lower socioeconomic status (Darmon and Drewnowski, 2008.) Energy density is the amount of energy/calories per gram of food, lower density foods provide less energy/calories per gram as opposed to high density, refined foods (British Nutrition Foundation, 2016.) Diets composed of low energy density, nutrient rich foods are predominately more expensive than those diets composed of high energy density diets. High density diets are generally composed of refined grains, added sugars and added fat, where as low density diets are typically fresh fruit and vegetables, lean meat and dairy products. Those of a lower socioeconomic status tend to select a diet which has a long shelf life which then tends to be dry packaged, meaning that lower incomes

In fact, the article Down to Earth: All Vegetarian Organic & Natural confirms that, “The average child sees more than 10,000 food ads on TV each year, most for high-caloric, high-fat, and high-sugar meals.” In continuation, a group of health professionals formed an experiment on television ads, targeting children. They, “undertook a collaboration among 13 research groups in Australia, Asia, Western Europe, and North and South America. Across all sampled countries, children were exposed to high volumes of television advertising for unhealthy foods, featuring child-oriented persuasive techniques” (“Television Food Advertising”). Children all over the world are affected with obesity, they see advertisements every day in their local communities. Schools also contribute to obesity, the article Down to Earth: All Vegetarian Organic & Natural, additionally claims, “Not only does the fast food industry spend billions per year on marketing, but they have

Obesity is generally caused by an imbalance of energy, this is when a persons energy intake from food exceeds their energy expenditure over a considerable period of time (Department of Health, 2009). One of the biggest causes of obesity in the western world is our access to high fatty, high sugar over processed fast foods such as MacDonalds, Hungry Jacks and more. According to Germov (2014, pp 212) nearly 1 out of every 4 meals Australian’s consume is prepared outside the household. The reasons for the increased intake of fast food and other high sugar substances can vary dramatically, however it can be due to a persons socioeconomic status, the price, and the convenience of not having to worry about preparing a meal yourself. Germov (2014, pp 215) also states that people in lower socioeconomic statuses have a higher prevalence of obesity than people in a higher socioeconomic status. This could be because the price of healthy food is much higher than the price of cheap fast food. Furthermore, an article by the Huffington Post has stated that it will cost a person an estimated $550 more per year to buy and consume healthy organic food rather than buying cheap processed foods. Therefore, if people in lower socioeconomic statuses are

The need for a job in American society is vital and not having one in today’s society can cause major financial problems for an individual or a whole family. An average American, typically works eight hour shifts and sometimes even put in overtime to meet their needs. After an exhausting day at work, people tend to get hungry and the infamous question of “what to eat” begins to occupy every inner thought. Some are not only wondering what they should eat for dinner, but most of these workers also have a family to come home to and feed. People come home tired, lacking motivation to do anything, and the thought of having to prepare dinner for themselves or their family sounds discouraging. On the way home from work, everyone is bound to see a fast food restaurant of some sort, waiting for potential consumers in the street corner, illuminated by an infamous neon sign. The temptation to stop by and grab a quick meal is overwhelming, but there is always one jumbled up thought that suggests preparing a meal at home would be wiser. The typical American citizen has to fight a mental battle on deciding where they should take their health and how it will benefit them in the long run. Though most individuals who visit these fast food establishments can care less about the nutrition value behind their favorite meals, it is an important component to consider when buying at these places. With working from nine to five and coming home with the potential to eat everything in sight, if it

The shift towards greener and fresher food is a notion that more and more people are adhering to. While irrational people consider this to be a fad, making adjustments to prolong one’s life is a movement in American culture that is not predicted to go away. Although most people desire to eat cleaner, healthy eating is considered to be an expensive luxury that underprivileged people do not have access to. Indigent college kids and low income families can only afford what is the cheapest, which is most commonly the unhealthiest. Healthy eating is an indulgence that only the wealthy can maintain due to the government increasing the price of produce, the high cost of organic food, and limited healthy food options in high poverty neighborhoods. Penniless Americans are more likely to suffer from serious health complications due to poor dietary choices.

About a third of children in the U.S. are considered overweight or obese, and researchers believe television advertising is a significant contributing factor (4). Exposure to television advertising is basically universal and the ads present foods as desirable and attractive. Children have been shown to be far more receptive to television advertising messages than classroom lessons (3). It leaves a harder lasting impression on them because the food products are presented in a cool, fun way that attracts children. Most of the time, children would pick foods that they may not even like, simply because they think it’s the cool thing to eat and once a kid gets his mind set on what they want, it is very hard to steer them away from wanting it. Television ads for foods geared toward children are usually fun, and bright with animations and lots of cool characters that the children can relate to. This directly influences the child’s food preference and unfortunately most of these ads are for processed, unhealthy food products like cereals, snacks, fast food, and soft drinks. In the U.S., there are few restrictions on food ads, but that's not the case in the U.K., where junk food can't be marketed on children's television (4).

Food advertisements, if focused at the right people and in the right places, are a complete success. These features, some of which are commercials, seduce society into buying food that we necessarily do not need. Many advertisement companies, especially those about food, are directed to children because they know that if you grab the kids you have their parents. While brands are using fun cartoons like “Trix Rabbit” and “Toucan Sam” (Green, 2007, p. 49) supermarkets are taking these items and placing them right in front of the children, at their level, advertising the “Fun foods” (Elliot, 2008, p. 259-273). They do this so the kids will use their, “pester power” (Scholsser, n.d., p. 2) to get what they want. A series of studies have been performed on children and television advertisements. An article states, “These studies have generally linked children's television viewing to negative health effects” (Korr, 2008, p. 451). Amongst these negative effects is a higher level of childhood obesity (p. 451). Similarly, in another study performed by a group of researchers, kids were asked to explain the television commercials that they remembered the best. The answers given were then compared with their diets. Interestingly, the items those children remembered best, chips, sweets, and sodas were a huge part of what they ate (Hitching & Moynihan, 1998, p. 511-517). However, some authors argue that television producer’s, even though their

Every individual has a certain lifestyle; the slob, the jock, the nerd. However, when it comes to food, we all fit into two main categories. Those that choose to live a healthy lifestyle, and those who choose to live an unhealthy lifestyle. A pivotal point in every person’s life is when we can decide which one to lead. When picking between an unhealthy lifestyle and a healthy lifestyle, we should look at food quality, price, convenience, and the impact on personal health of each lifestyle.

The choice of food by a consumer is predominantly affected by convenience. The growth of home delivery for supplies, microwave dinners, drive-thru windows, and internet shopping is an indication that most consumers are driven by convenience in the determination of choices (Jaeger and Meiselman, 2004, p.318). Customers use convenience to establish how, what, why, when, with whom, and where to eat (Costa et al., 2005, p.79). Jaeger, S.R., Cardello, A., V. (2007, p.238), argued that the achievement of proper nutrition by individuals if often affected by the convenience of getting fruits and vegetables. The Australian Bureau of Statistics in their recent report showed that the expenditure on fast foods by households is high in comparison to other healthy foods.