Negative Positive And Negative Influences Of Food Commercial For Children In America

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Food Commercialization
Abstract
Food commercialization accounts for $ 17 billion due to their impacts on children, teens, and parents in a year. The influence of food advertisement is beyond the consumers' behavior which is either done intentionally or not. Most researchers have observed that food commercialization affect children’s, teens’ and parents especially on their physical health, emotional wellbeing, educational development, relationships and mental relationship. Furthermore, the food marketers venture in food commercial especially for children, teens and their parents due to their high spending power, their influence on the purchase and as future food consumers at the adult stage. It is noted that food commercialization either benefit or are detrimental to the children’s, teens and their parents’ nutrition. Thus, the study determines the effects of commercialization of fast foods and prepackaged foods on children, teens and parents through examination of the various advantages and disadvantages in America.
Introduction
Commercialization in food advertisement involves the use of techniques and channels to reach these high numbers of consumers since they are able to foster brand-building as well as influencing food purchase behaviors. Such channels include in-school food marketing, television advertisement, product placements, use of kids clubs, and the internet usage, use of products with brand logos as well as promotions that target children, teens, and parents (Harris, Bargh and Brownell 404). Regarding the nutritional contents, foods that are commercialized to children are high in sugar and fats which are usually not consistent with the advice of the national dietary recommendation. For example, fast foods and prepackaged foods. On a separate note, about three-fifth of parents in America with children under the age of 18 years have a notion that food commercialization is harmful to their health. Thus, the secondary research paper was purposed to examine the positive and negative influences of food commercial for children, teens and their parents in America (Harris, Bargh and Brownell 404).
The Study
The secondary search review determines the effects of commercialization of fast foods and prepackaged foods on children, teens and parents through examination of the various advantages and disadvantages in America. In line with the summarized review of literature examined, it was noted that fast food and prepackaged food commercialization increase the knowledge of teens, parents, and children on foods. However, their influence on eating such foods are not based on healthy eating but the appealing advertisement and the immediate environment among others such as in-school advertisement and sponsored events. Based on the impacts, it is noted that increased eating of junk foods, overweight ad obesity as well as living a sedentary lifestyle is associated with commercial foods.
Commercialization of Fast Foods and Prepackaged Food to Children, teens, and Parents
Commercialization of food for children, teen and their parents have been o the rise with the USA spending more than the US $ 100 million on direct advertisement to children annually. However, the total annual spending on an advertisement for children, teen and parents are $ 17 billion. More corporate use television channels, radio stations, film studios and internet especially the web businesses directly towards the younger audiences. In most cases, these corporate insert screen time to children which is not recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (Story and French 3). Even though there is emergence of internet marketing via computers and hand-held devices such as the MP3 players as well as the use of message marketing on phones, television still remains the main channel for food commercialization for children, teens, and their parents. On average, children of ages 8-18 have been noted to consume different types of media with an approximate time of 44.5 hours per week glued to computers, televisions and screens gaming when compared to their engagement in other activities apart from sleeping (Story and French 3).
Other advertisement such as the use of product placement in the media content which is directed towards children even though is illegal has a tremendous influence on children, teen, and parent's dieting. For example, the American Idol advertisement program is directed towards children of age 2-11 years with Coca-Cola products. In other occasions, product placement is added on the website contents, movies, books, songs, video games for children. On other cases, product placement is done in a morphing technique to enhance advergaming whereby the whole website based games embrace a given product (Linn 195). For example, the general mills website and life savers games. On other occasions, corporate use brand licensing for food commercialization especially for children and teens whereby the media image is usually sold to different companies to market toys, clothing, accessories and food. In addition, the children’s media are used as marketing channels which account for 97% of viewers who are children of six years of age and below in the USA. In addition, the children's books are currently linked to media adverts which influence their preferences for foods, music, plays and arts (Linn 195).
Corporate entities besides using brand licensing engage in the provision of corporate-sponsored educational incentives and contests. Most of the elementary schools in the USA have programs that are geared towards the promotion of food items such as pizza. In addition, children are normally rewarded with pizzas when they read specific books or required number of books as well as attaining spelling goals. These awards are also accompanied by the issuance of a certificate for free pizza (Harris, Bargh and Brownell 404). For instance, the McDonald's Spellit Club is known for its rewards of the best scores on the spelling contests with their coupons for hamburgers, chicken McNuggets, and cheeseburgers. Other awards include redeemable French fries and soft drinks. In addition, there are food industry-sponsored classes for nutrition education materials for children such as Campbell’s Prego Thickness Experiment, Count on Dominos as well as the National Potato Board Count Your Chips (Linn 195).
Positive and negative Impacts of food commercialization
Fast food and prepackaged food advertisement in different media channels such as television has both positive and negative influence for children, teens and their parents.
Positive impacts
Food commercialization for children, teens and their parents enhance their knowledge on food items especially the parents. Studies indicate that most children in the USA have exposed to mass media especially television. The availability of free non-commercial children's channels is flocked by advertisement with no restrictions in the USA unlike other countries such as Germany and Europe (The United States. Federal ...