The Effects Of Advertising On Childhood Obesity Essay

More research is needed to examine whether food advertising is a causal factor for increased risk of obesity. Experimental and epidemiologic research, including longitudinal designs, is needed to study the effect of food advertising on children's food choices, eating behaviors and body weight. Studies need to include the various marketing channels used to reach youth, such as television, schools, and the Internet, as well as different age periods, such as early childhood, middle childhood, and

Some children’s families do not have the finances to purchase healthy foods, so they buy what they can afford which is fast food and junk. Markets have lowered their prices for the unhealthy food making it easier for consumers to buy and harder to resist when it fits in the budget. Also, television has become a big part of the youth’s extra-curricular activities. Children don’t spend most of their time outside playing anymore, now they watch TV for more than seven hours. A recent literature review by Kaiser Family Foundation highlighted a number of studies that suggested that advertising influenced dietary and other food choices in children (M. Dehghan, N. Akhtar-Danesh and A. Merchant). While watching TV for hours on end, they will see advertising for fast food restaurants and junk food. Unhealthy foods are advertised on TV to target children and adolescents. TV viewing is a contributing factor to childhood obesity because it may take away from the time children spend in physical activities. Watching TV leads to increase calorie intake through snacking and eating meals in front of the TV. Plus influence children to make unhealthy food choices through exposure to food advertisements that are unhealthy.

Twenty five percent of children in the US are overweight and a shocking eleven percent of them are obese (Dehghan, Akhtar-Danesh and Merchant). Child hood obesity is a forerunner to one of the United States greatest public health crisis. The growth of technology has had a major impact on childhood obesity. Obesity is a widespread epidemic and is getting incredibly worse as technology increases. The use of technology relates directly with childhood obesity because it has been proven that technology has made children live more sedentary lifestyles versus active lifestyles. Also, television commercials influence children to increase their food intake as well as advertise foods extremely high in sugar and fat. Childhood obesity is mainly caused because of personal lifestyle choices and environmental factors, such as where the child is living. (Dehghan, Akhtar-Danesh and Merchant).

Ultimately, parents and advertising play a huge part in childhood obesity. Parents need to teach kids at a young age, the importance of exercising and eating right and how it will lead to a healthier lifestyle. If parents are parenting, by encouraging their children that the commercials aren’t always right and they

Additionally, the connection found between childhood obesity and the marketing of the food industry in the American Psychological Association’s article The Impact of Food Advertising on Childhood Obesity is intriguing because it has been found that the advertisement of fast food may affect childhood obesity. The marketing of food industries has an impact on childhood obesity because fast food

Childhood Obesity is known as the number one problem in the twenty first century. People today don’t realize how bad of a problem this is because they don’t most likely know someone who is going through it. But do you ever think what is causing children to be obese? Is it just their bad choices, or is it media? Like for example, pressured fast food commercials who are leading the children or young adults to make these bad choices. People today don’t realize how simple commercials seduces the human brain. Fast food commercials are pressured commercials who are dragging their customers into buying their unhealthy foods just because of a dollar less. Childhood Obesity is caused because of the media and their; influential pressured fast food

America, is now known for its mass amount of obese citizens, especially for child obesity. The majority of the people accuses food industries-primarily fast food companies-for their involvement in the American obesity epidemic. Although this is true in some aspects, people are also put to fault. Advertisements are ubiquitous in a child's environment. Therefore, both the people, mostly parents, and food industries contribute to the obesity epidemic of children.

It was found that at each hour of TV watched by a 5-year-old child their chances of obesity would rise by 7%. Whilst studying 8000 children who had watched 8 or more hours per week, all age 3 it was found that by the time all those children were aged 7, every single one of them were at higher risk than average of obesity. (Pediatrics, 2011). Television on its own shows from 4400 to 7600 fast food commercials a day. Those statistics don’t include what is shown in magazine, billboards and so on. The number of health promoting adverts shown is 165 a day its no wonder today’s children are at higher risk. Speaking of which, the number of children under 5 effected worldwide by obesity found in 2013 was an astonishing 42 million. Its predicted that by 2025 this number will rise to a huge 70 million. (Bupa,2016) The media has fooled people the way never use overweight or unhealthy looking people In adverts, how often do we see obese people on our televisions? Especially when we are trying to be sold something. More often than not in movies fat people are portrayed as unattractive and unpopular and the laughing stock. Society seems to find it difficult to sympathise with obesity as a disease as many see it as self-inflicted issue. (Teaching tolerance, 2016). ) it was found that by 2006, obesity was responsible for 10 percent of media

Hospitalizations of children for obesity-related illnesses are on the rise, “the annual direct cost of childhood obesity is reaching nearly $14.3 billion”(Mikailova). It is very worrying that children are developing such bad health conditions due to the rising rates of obesity. Despite the growing rates of obesity related hospitalizations advertisements for unhealthy foods continue to be aired during children’s programming.

"Low-income children 's environments are saturated by the presence of media continuously exposing them to obesity-promoting products that encourage the consumption of unhealthful foods and discouraging physical activity"(Interventions to prevent childhood obesity n.d.). Such disproportionately marketing and advertising have an unusually strong influences on the

This article is well written and helps support my argument that there are many more factors influencing childhood obesity, not just marketing. Significant data was provided in this article, specifically the fact that the advertisement rates at which children see food advertisements has actually decreased by percentage since 1977 to 2004. Other equally significant points are made concerning the role of parents as the gatekeepers of product purchases as well as industry self-regulation.

Americans have always had the mentality that bigger is better. Bigger cars, bigger houses, and bigger salaries are just a few ways that Americans supersize their lives. But, there is one other thing that has been growing in American households: their weight. Portion sizes are out of control, video games always beat a playground, and everything is motorized. This is the way that American children are growing up, and out. But in a society that is so obsessed with looking good and thus, thin, how are these children getting so large? Advertisements. The news has been attacking advertisements aimed at children, and rightfully so, they are showing unhealthy lifestyles and eating habits in a socially acceptable way. Children watch cartoons.

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).

In 2012 Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity stated $4.6 billion was spent on advertising to young children and adolescents (Krisberg, 2014). Children are watching too much television and the commercials they are seeing is tempting them to eat what they see, this is where a responsible parent should take the remote control away and have their children exercising, playing basketball, and running, anything but sitting behind a television or a computer. As stated by the daily press, advertising of candy, cereal linked to childhood obesity study (2004) “Television advertisements have double from 20,000 to 40,000 since 1970” (p.1). Children this young are vulnerable to advertising directed at them. McDonalds has

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