From the past to the present day, concern is steadily rising in regards to the conspicuous correlation between the advertising of junk food and the growing rate of obesity among young people. An analysis and discussion will take place in the first section of this essay which will consist of an overview on this issue. Secondly, a more detailed discussion will occur which will identify the link between advertising and increasing obesity among the youth; and third, a contrast between various scholars will transpire in relation to differing views of the addressed issue. This essay will explore numerous academic sources in order to discuss the observed effects that advertising has towards obesity, with close focus to young people in order to prove that there is a link between the advertising of junk food and the growing incidence of obesity among young people.
Youth obesity is an escalating problem which causes harmful, unfavourable effects and can intensify and become fatal when it is carried on into adulthood (Chou, Rashad & Grossman, 2005). Such harmful effects of obesity include various cancers, cardiovascular, orthopaedic and metabolic diseases and several other disorders such as psychiatric complications (Lobstein and Dibb, 2005). From this, it is undeniable that identifying the relationship between the advertising of junk food and the increased rate in youth obesity is essential in order to generate suggestions or methods in which this may be prevented or reduced significantly. Advocates of health have been attentive towards the obesity epidemic and have been meticulously focusing on advertising as a causative factor as advertisements are consistently promoting junk food on television (Harris, Bargh and Bronwell, 2009). Suc...
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.... A crisis in the marketplace: how food marketing contributes to childhood obesity and what can be done. Annual review of public health, 30, 211-225.
Kaur, H., Choi, W. S., Mayo, M. S., & Jo Harris, K. (2003). Duration of television watching is associated with increased body mass index. The journal of pediatrics, 143(4), 506-511.
Lobstein, T., & Dibb, S. (2005). Evidence of a possible link between obesogenic food advertising and child overweight. Obesity reviews, 6(3), 203-208.
Robinson, T. N. (2001). Television viewing and childhood obesity. Pediatric Clinics of North America, 48(4), 1017-1025.
Wiecha, J. L., Peterson, K. E., Ludwig, D. S., Kim, J., Sobol, A., & Gortmaker, S. L. (2006). When children eat what they watch: impact of television viewing on dietary intake in youth. Archives of pediatrics & adolescent medicine, 160(4), 436-442.
One way that advertising is harmful is advertising poses health risks to youths. In a video titled, “The Myth of Choice: How Junk-Food Marketers Target Our Kids,” narrated by Anna Lappe, it talks about how advertisers target youths. In the video it states, “...only 16% of kids get balanced food.” Foods that are advertised the most,
In the article, Every Nook and Cranny: The Dangerous Spread of Commercialized Culture by Gary Ruskin and Juliet Schor (Ackley 361). Since the early 90s is when Commercialism has bombarded the society. Ruskin and Schor provide examples why advertising has an effect on people’s health. Marketing related diseases afflicting people in the United States, and especially children, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes and smoking-related illnesses. “Each day, about 2,000 U.S. children begin to smoke, and about one-third of them will die from tobacco-related illnesses” (Ackley 366). Children are inundated with advertising for high calorie junk food and fast food, and, predictably, 15 percent of U.S. children aged 6 to 19 are now overweight (Ackley 366). Commercialism promotes future negative effects and consumers don’t realize it.
In the documentary Killer at Large, former Surgeon General Richard Carmona remarked that “Obesity is a terror within. It’s destroying our society from within and unless we do something about it, the magnitude of the dilemma will dwarf 9/11 or any other terrorist event that you can point out…” Carmona is indeed right, with the rapid increase of obese children, America is on the fast track to producing a generation with a life expectancy shorter than their peers. One of the main factor is the media representation of obesity (Greenstreet 2008). In today’s society parents are not only worrying about televisions influence on their kid’s behavior but their weight and health, too. According to study conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation, that researched the role of media in childhood obesity, stated the obesity increased by 2% for every hours of television in adolescent’s ages 12 to 17. The advertisement of food and beverages present a very strong influence on the children. Most of the products being advert...
Obesity in the United States, which the media has labeled a national crisis, has also been connected to poverty rates. Big fast food industry’s target poor communities, and spend millions of dollars each year to create advertising that appeals to these specific areas. These industry’s also target naïve children when advertising because they know that eating habits developed in childhood are usually carried into adulthood. Children who are exposed to television advertisements for unhealthy food and who are not educated well enough on good nutrition will grow up and feed their families the same unhealthy foods they ate as kids. A big way fast food giants are able to make certain young people have access to unhealthy food is by strategically placing franchises in close proximity to schools. They will often place three times as many outlets within walking distance of schools than in areas where there are no schools nearby. The way fast food advertising is targeted towards children is very alarming considering how important good nutrition is for young people and how a child’s eating habits can affect their growth and
Veerman, J. L., Van Beeck, E. F., Banerndregt, J. J., & Mackenbach, J. P. (2009). By how much would limiting TV food advertising reduce childhood obesity? European Journal of Public Health,, 19(4), 365-369. doi: Retrieved from
3.DuRant RH, Baranowski T, Johnson M,”. The relationship among television watching, physical activity, and body composition of young children”. Pediatrics. 1999;94:445-449.
Powell, L., Harris, J. and Fox, T. (2013). Food Marketing Expenditures Aimed at Youth: Putting the Numbers in Context. American journal of preventive medicine, 45, (4), pp. 453-461.
The fast food industry is one of the largest sectors of the United States economy. Companies such as Burger King, Wendy's, Taco Bell, McDonalds and KFC have all become household names. Each of these companies operates under a similar mission statement: to serve a quick, filling meal for a very low cost. The primary marketing medium for these companies is television where via commercials, they can portray both their products and a lifestyle. Their intense advertising focus on minorities and children, however, has begun to exacerbate the epidemic of obesity that is sweeping our nation. Fast food's televised advertising is a significant contributor to obesity in today's minority youth. By promoting unhealthy tendencies and high-calorie foods as well as an attitude that promotes tolerance of diseases such as obesity, these companies are influencing people to such a degree that it is negatively affecting their health. This dangerous marketing method is not only sweeping America, but other countries as well. The emphasis on fast food companies' immoral marketing raises the question: Are people eating for hunger or because of an advertised, influenced habit? However, we must also address whether or not fast food companies are mainly responsible, or if the blame also covers their consumers.
According to “Burger Battles” from the Weekly Reader, obesity is defined as a person whose weight is 20 percent higher than recommended for their height (Burger Battles 1). When this condition begins to affect children lives, it is then known as childhood obesity. Within the United States of America, around 15 percent of children are considered to be obese (Holguin 3). Increasing tremendously, this outbreak has actually tripled in the amount of obese teen and doubled in children up to the age of thirteen (Burger Battles 2). One of the factors that is usually overlooked in the cause for obesity is the role of television. Not only does it reduce the amount of physical activity, the advertisements and commercials are targeting innocent viewers. In a survey completed by Gary Ruskin of Commercial Alert, the average child watches nearly 19 hours and 40 minutes of television a week (Ruskin 2). With that amount of time spent watching television, advertisements for fast food will be entering the children’s minds.
It is said that fast food advertising is linked to rising childhood and teen obesity. The childhood obesity epidemic is a serious public health problem that increases morbidity, morality, and has substantial long-term economic and social costs (opposing viewpoints). Approximately 20% of our youth are now overweight with obesity rates in preschool age children increasing at alarming speed (opposing viewpoints). U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona said, “obesity is the fastest-growing cause of illness and death in the United States.” When I read this I was shocked. This is something that can change, but its up to ourselves to make that commitment. No one else has the power to do so but us. Did you know that treating obesity-related problems cost Americans $117 billion annually, that’s $420 per person (CQ Researcher).
One way that fast food effects obesity is by advertising their products to children (Miller). In her article Food Advertising Contributes to Obesity, Patti Miller explains that the fast food companies are targeting kids and teenagers by advertising on television. The fast food advertisements are promoting unhealthy products as acceptable food which influences children to choose those meals. The American Psychological Association, an organization focused on improving the lives of individuals, expressed that with the exposure of different fast food commercials, children request to purchase these unhealthy products and cause the parents to be influenced by these requests. This concludes the idea that once children are encouraged by the commercials, they opt to consume the fast food advertised on television. Today, fast food companies are even advertising through schools by offering pizzas and burgers as school lunches, which consequently becomes a daily meal for children and teenagers to consume (Wadden, Brownell,
This negative influence has been tested in a study conducted by Anne E. Becker, PhD, who assessed the results of prolonged exposure to television on disordered eating attitudes and behaviors among Fijian adolescent girls. The findings of the study were:
Beales III, J. Howard, and Robert Kulick. Does Advertising On Television Cause Childhood Obesity? A Longitudinal Analysis. Journal Of Public Policy & Marketing 32.2 (2013): 185-194. Business Source Complete. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.
WETHINGTON, HOLLY, LIPING PAN, and BETTYLOU SHERRY. "The Association Of Screen Time, Television In The Bedroom, And Obesity Among School-Aged Youth: 2007 National Survey Of Children's Health." Journal Of School Health 83.8 (2013): 573-581. Academic Search Complete. Web. 9 Nov. 2013.
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