Helping Children Resist the Effects of Marketing

According to a recent article, children are greatly influenced by foods that are marketed using cartoon characters.

The numbers of overweight and obese preschoolers is rising.  One in three preschool children is classified as overweight and obese and we now know that 1 in 5 preschoolers will begin Kindergarten obese.  Being overweight or obese so early in life is a risk to physical, mental and social emotional health.  The main contributors to obesity in the preschool age group are poor food choices and limited physical activity.  This article highlights both of these contributors.  It is recommended that children have less than 2 hours per day of screen time, including television, video games and computers.   Children are spending much more time than the recommendation on screen time.  A recent study showed that children were in front of the TV for more than a third of the time they were awake everyday.  Children are gaining familiarity with television characters from too much television viewing then are exposed to the characters again through the marketing of less nutritious foods.

The article suggests banning cartoon characters from marketing on less nutritious foods to children.  This would be a great step to take.  It is also important to get kids up and moving!  Children are natural movers and need more than 2 hours of active play everyday.  With the summer months upon us, we have a great opportunity to get outside and engage children in the activity that they need.  Another tip to lessen the effects of cartoon marketing is to empower children to be involved in their own health and deciding what goes into their bodies.  Everyone knows that children hate being tricked.  It can be beneficial to explain to the children that the companies that sell these food products are trying to trick them into buying foods that are not so good for their bodies by using cartoon characters.  Encouraging children to take a second look at the food that is being sold to them and why they would have to use a cartoon to get children to choose it can be helpful in the fight against marketing.