Fast food marketing towards children
Dear ProCor community,
As the negative impact of fast food continues to grow worldwide, it is increasingly important that we understand the implications of this growth, both from a health and social perspective.
A recent article in the Boston Globe highlighted the ongoing struggle over how fast food is marketed in the US, especially towards children. A 2008 study by the Federal Trade Commission found that US$1.6 billion per year was being spent marketing food to kids, the vast majority of which are unhealthy. In the past 30 years, the percentage of overweight children in the US has tripled; research has shown that this is largely a consequence of fast food marketing and advertising campaigns increasingly directed at a young audience. Fast food establishments use everything from appealing television ads to alluring toys to provide children with incentives for fast food consumption. "McDonald's is the stranger in the playground handing out candy to children," said Stephen Gardner, litigation director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, of McDonald's use of toys as a marketing tool. Despite calls by McDonald's CEO for Gardner to retract this statement, neither Gardner nor his organization apologized for his assertion. Although significant success has been made in the reduction of advertising for candy and sweets, fast food advertising targeted at children is still on the rise, according to a new study from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Children are continually bombarded by ads promoting unhealthy food consumption; a recent study of the popular children's TV network Nickelodeon found that 80% of ads promoted junk food.
Fast food companies such as Burger King and McDonald's have sought to fight their poor health image via new ad campaigns promoting healthier options. McDonald's Happy Meal commercials have touted such healthier products as chicken nuggets, low-fat milk, and apples. Although in theory this represents a positive sentiment, in practice, studies have shown that (in the case of McDonald's) 93% of the time customers were not informed of these healthy alternatives while in the restaurant.
This battle over fast food culture in the US is poignant for a global audience as well as a US audience because it serves as a powerful warning for countries around the world in which fast food is beginning to take-root. Following on the heels of increased urban growth and globalization, fast food and other unhealthy aspects of western culture have begun to infiltrate the developing world. In China, for example, rampant economic growth has led to a vast increase in fast food chains, which have caused diabetes, hypertension, and obesity rates to skyrocket in recent years. As the birthplace of fast food, the US should serve as a cautionary tale to nations around the world, a constant reminder that the low price of fast food has a high cost.
"Food, Fun - and Fat"
Stephen Smith
Boston Globe; 19 July 2010 (open access)
http://www.boston.com/community/moms/articles/2010/07/19/war_on_obesity_targets_food_marketing/
Thanks,
Romey
Romey Sklar
Intern, ProCor
Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation
21 Longwood Avenue
Brookline, MA 02446 USA
Tel: 617 732 1318
Fax: 617 277 0347
romey.sklar@lownfoundation.org
www.procor.org
As the negative impact of fast food continues to grow worldwide, it is increasingly important that we understand the implications of this growth, both from a health and social perspective.
A recent article in the Boston Globe highlighted the ongoing struggle over how fast food is marketed in the US, especially towards children. A 2008 study by the Federal Trade Commission found that US$1.6 billion per year was being spent marketing food to kids, the vast majority of which are unhealthy. In the past 30 years, the percentage of overweight children in the US has tripled; research has shown that this is largely a consequence of fast food marketing and advertising campaigns increasingly directed at a young audience. Fast food establishments use everything from appealing television ads to alluring toys to provide children with incentives for fast food consumption. "McDonald's is the stranger in the playground handing out candy to children," said Stephen Gardner, litigation director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, of McDonald's use of toys as a marketing tool. Despite calls by McDonald's CEO for Gardner to retract this statement, neither Gardner nor his organization apologized for his assertion. Although significant success has been made in the reduction of advertising for candy and sweets, fast food advertising targeted at children is still on the rise, according to a new study from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Children are continually bombarded by ads promoting unhealthy food consumption; a recent study of the popular children's TV network Nickelodeon found that 80% of ads promoted junk food.
Fast food companies such as Burger King and McDonald's have sought to fight their poor health image via new ad campaigns promoting healthier options. McDonald's Happy Meal commercials have touted such healthier products as chicken nuggets, low-fat milk, and apples. Although in theory this represents a positive sentiment, in practice, studies have shown that (in the case of McDonald's) 93% of the time customers were not informed of these healthy alternatives while in the restaurant.
This battle over fast food culture in the US is poignant for a global audience as well as a US audience because it serves as a powerful warning for countries around the world in which fast food is beginning to take-root. Following on the heels of increased urban growth and globalization, fast food and other unhealthy aspects of western culture have begun to infiltrate the developing world. In China, for example, rampant economic growth has led to a vast increase in fast food chains, which have caused diabetes, hypertension, and obesity rates to skyrocket in recent years. As the birthplace of fast food, the US should serve as a cautionary tale to nations around the world, a constant reminder that the low price of fast food has a high cost.
"Food, Fun - and Fat"
Stephen Smith
Boston Globe; 19 July 2010 (open access)
http://www.boston.com/community/moms/articles/2010/07/19/war_on_obesity_targets_food_marketing/
Thanks,
Romey
Romey Sklar
Intern, ProCor
Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation
21 Longwood Avenue
Brookline, MA 02446 USA
Tel: 617 732 1318
Fax: 617 277 0347
romey.sklar@lownfoundation.org
www.procor.org
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