CNN
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Colorful labels and cartoons on packages could be a good indicator that a snack isn’t the most nutritious, according to a new study.
Products with marketing that appealed to children were higher in sugars and lower in all other nutrients, according to the study, published Wednesday in the journal PLOS One.
The study looked at nearly 6,000 packaged foods to analyze their number of marketing strategies aimed at children and their nutritional information.
“There are many products in our grocery stores that have very strong marketing and are very targeted to children,” said study lead author Dr. Christine Mulligan, a postdoctoral fellow and research consultant in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Toronto in Canada. “Unfortunately, we also found that these products are, in most cases, very unhealthy and of poorer nutritional quality than products that are not marketed to children.”
Marketing to children is an attractive strategy for companies because children will often grow up to be “brand loyal adults” and keep coming back, said Dr. Maya Adam, director of health media innovation and associate clinical professor at the Department of Pediatrics at Stanford School of Medicine. Adam was not involved in the new study.
“As adults, around the world, we take extra precautions when it comes to our children. We buckle them into car seats, make sure they wear helmets,” Adam said. “When it comes to packaged foods, the food industry is doing the opposite: it’s actually promoting less healthy foods for the most vulnerable members of society.”
And the problem could be even worse than the study shows. Mulligan noted that the study looked only at products at one point in time.
“We are probably underestimating the amount of advertising children are exposed to on food packages in real time, and packaging is just one way food companies are targeting children with food marketing.” , said.
Plenty of research shows that kids are getting these products from all sides, whether it’s on TV or on social media, at sports practice or at community centers, even at school, he said.
“This is important for readers to understand, because seeing all this marketing is affecting the way kids eat, and the poor eating habits kids are developing will continue throughout their lives and affect their long-term health.” Mulligan said.
The study was done in Canada, but the problem is global, Mulligan said.
And governments will need to step in to regulate the ability of companies to directly target children when marketing products that could harm their health, he added.
“These policies must be strong and comprehensive if they are to effectively protect children from these harmful marketing practices in all places where children live, eat and play,” Mulligan said.
“It is clear that companies use product packaging to market their products to children. That is why groups like Heart and Stroke are calling for the inclusion of all types of marketing, not just television and digital media, in the regulations planned for Canada,” said Manuel Arango, director of health and advocacy policy at Heart and Stroke. Stroke Foundation. from Canada.
But in the meantime, there are ways to make changes at home, starting with being more aware of the ways kids are exposed to ads for products that could be harmful to them, she said.
An easy way to start is to cook more at home, Adam said.
“For those meals, you control the amount of fat, sugar and salt in your children’s food,” she added.
Cooking and eating at home has also been shown to improve mental and emotional health and academic performance, Adam said.
Mulligan recommends talking to kids about how companies use marketing and how it might influence their choices.
“This can also be a great opportunity to get kids involved in family grocery shopping and help them learn how to choose, prepare and eat healthy and delicious foods,” she said.
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