Selling Bad Health to Kids

Only in a mean society.

The marketing of cheaply produced, unhealthy junk food to kids is another blight on our prosperous society. It does not make sense: advertising and selling food products that are known to cause health problems later in life - directly to children.

How is this acceptable to caring people?
Where has the corporate friendship and ethic gone?
Why aren't governments more concerned about kid's lives?

I do not believe that the fault lies entirely with parents. Partly because they may have been brainwashed too, after many years of being subject to the massive corporate persuasion efforts. But the finger is commonly pointed to moms and dads, especially by business when confronted about their crude marketing tactics. Parents should know all about unhealthy food choices and the grief that can follow later in life, and they should educate their kids. But there are armies of advertisers with a wide ranging supply of tricks to conscript tots and teens to a life of poorer health with such as diabetes and stroke.

This is free enterprise but it is a flawed and cruel system if it can be used in this way. Allowing big business to reap profits from promoting product sales that knowingly cause personal harm should be severely restricted or made unlawful. But the will of politicians does not seem to be there. There is always the commercial connection popping up when there is discussion about troubling situations and government's lack of positive action on an issue.

Governments and corporations of this era will not be looked upon favorably in the history books.

Picture the big juicy burger with added cheese and dressing, or a tall, icy, sugar laden refreshment - appearing repeateadly during youth and child TV programming.

How about the cereal aisle in the supermarket, cartoon alley easily gets the attention of the little ones.

The continuous efforts of marketers are coming through strongly to kids and adolescents via many hours of watching TV or surfing the internet. The cleverly designed ads also show up in print, on buses, food packages, clothes, toys, and wherever it will get good exposure to children. The young will eat it all up; they don't have the experience to know better. They are ripe picking!

With all the finely tuned slick methods marketers use how easy can it be for parents to compete with the onslaught on their young loved ones? Even with good intentions there is peer influence, all the other kids are into it. Yes it is possible but difficult, and requires serious effort.

The emphasis and pressures that corporations put on kids for current and future sales revenue is by far a most lucrative selling technique that many companies now rely on. Catch the kids young and hold them for life. Establishing brands for food, clothing and tech gadgets at an early age can last a lifetime - very profitable and increasingly popular with the big manufacturers.

Sugar, salt and fat, the big bad three in food, they taste good and bring in lots of money. These ingredients and other additives can be very unhealthy when consumed in excessive amounts, yet they are very commonly over used in packaged foods and in restaurants, especially fast food outlets. They can be there to preserve product or simply to enhance taste.

The junk food industry has produced an epidemic of childhood obesity and other serious ailments. Even with food related health problems now well known they keep rising as the greedy efforts to market and sell more continues. It is the most 'rewarding' strategy used for increasing profits now and well into the future. But why isn't this a crime?

And where is there a balance? Campaigns for healthy eating exist but big money is not behind them, it is directed to the merchandising strategies that make the quickest profit. One suggestion is make unhealthy food costlier through taxing, and good food cheaper with subsidies. But why is there no action?

Free enterprise needs adjustments to fix this and provide our kids, future parents, a life free of avoidable sickness.

Speak of it when you can.

A few resources.
There are numerous related posts on this site.

The FCIC has a nice site with informative articles: The Road to a Healthy Life. These are the basic guidelines for eating a healthy diet and being physically active and may be viewed online and downloaded from the Internet. Topics include:
Go back to your roots: Eat all types of healthful food each day!
Food groups, using the Nutrition Facts label.
Nutrition and calories count! How many calories do you need?
Physical activity, food safety, and more.

A Scripps Research Study Shows Compulsive Eating Shares Same Addictive Biochemical Mechanism with Cocaine, Heroin Abuse.

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Social Stress and Depression

In today's fast paced consumer world many of us get weighed down with tensions, stresses and worries. And worse.

Parenting pressures can mount and be overwhelming with the challenging issues of work, home and raising kids. Our kids are often under extreme pressures with growing up, learning, competing and striving for acceptance with peers, and dealing with adults.

Depression may set in for a combination of reasons for any family member, and it can be upsetting to devastating.

If guilt is involved get rid of it. We can consider our errors or wrong doings long enough to realize the error of our ways. If there is something we can do about it and want to, we can do it. Otherwise we can assure ourselves that we will avoid that mistake in the future. Beyond this, rebashing ourselves endlessly will do no good, is a complete waste of time and unhealthy.

To improve upon a frenzied troublesome way of life we can reassess our values and routines. If possible, we can eliminate some of those things which are not necessary to a contented life, and we can slow down. Achieving a stress free way of life will help keep us happier and living longer.

Have a friend. Friendship can be a soothing balm for depression sufferers as the relationship takes up some mental capacity that would otherwise be used on anxieties and self-doubt. "The rule of friendship means there should be mutual sympathy between them, each supplying what the other lacks and trying to benefit the other, always using friendly and sincere words." - Buddha.

Severe depression can be very difficult to deal with and extremely harmful healthwise. Medical attention should always be a first consideration for serious depression.

Facts About Depression from the FCIC
At some time or another, everybody feels sad or blue. But if you are sad most of the time, and it's causing problems in your relationships or with normal daily activities, the problem may be depression. Some people think that depression is just a state of mind that people can "snap out of" if they only try. Unfortunately, this is not true. Depression is a real illness and can affect people of any age, race, ethnic or economic group. In any given year, over 18 million American adults will suffer from a depressive illness (which affects nearly twice as many women as men) and it is the leading cause of disability in the United States.

Symptoms of Depression
Depressive disorders come in different forms, the most common being major depression, dysthymia and bipolar disorder. Within these types there are variations in the number of symptoms, their severity, and persistence.

No one knows what causes depression. It is an illness. It may have something to do with:

• The way different parts of the brain “talk” to each other
• Depression runs in the family
• Being very sick or being sick all the time
• Stress
• Using drugs or alcohol
• Having a baby

Some of the symptoms of depression include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Sadness
• Things that used to make you happy, don’t make you happy anymore
• No interest in eating
• Eating too much, or all the time
• Sleeping too little, or all the time
• Feeling tired all the time
• Feeling nervous or cranky
• Crying a lot
• Feeling guilty
• Feeling hopeless
• Trouble paying attention
• Thinking of death or trying to kill yourself

Read more on depression at the FCIC information, articles, publications and resources.
Other Self-help posts here at S-F

Internet Safety Tips

We know that parents are concerned as the internet has introduced a whole new way for the young to interact. Where once it was word-of-mouth exchanges with friends and acquaintances in a school environment this has now been broadened astronomically. It now includes a much wider and looser definition of 'friends' locally and afar. And 'friends' who might not be friends but masked characters bringing unacceptable or repulsive interactions.

The net is an enormous communications advantage over previous generations. It is so valuable in exchanging information and knowledge that is accessible with the click of a few keys. But it has some very scary and socially unhealthy disadvantages that parents and kids should be aware of. Shrewdly camouflaged friendly and helpful temptations can turn out to be very harmful experiences.

From Instructify: Archive for the ‘Internet safety’ Category
At school access to the internet is monitored, there are often black lists of inappropriate sites, filtering systems and supervision by teachers and staff. But when the students get home this changes. The parents do not have access to the extensive resources and tools available to schools. So to help the parents we recommend that a simple three step rule, the 3 i's of internet safety. Read more . . .

FBI's Internet Safety Tips For the kids:
There are some very important things that you need to keep in mind when you're on your computer at home or at school.

• First, remember never to give out personal information such as your name, home address, school name, or telephone number in a chat room or on bulletin boards. Also, never send a picture of yourself to someone you chat with on the computer without your parent's permission.
• Never write to someone who has made you feel uncomfortable or scared.
• Do not meet someone or have them visit you without the permission of your parents.
• Tell your parents right away if you read anything on the Internet that makes you feel uncomfortable.
• Remember that people online may not be who they say they are. Someone who says that "she" is a "12-year-old girl" could really be an older man.

Lots of information and resources at the FCIC Internet Safety and Social Networks
Thanks to the Internet, you can order books, clothes, or appliances online; reserve a hotel room across the ocean; download music and games; check your bank balance 24 hours a day; or access your workplace from thousands of miles away. The flip-side, however, is that the Internet, and the anonymity it affords, can give online scammers, hackers, and identity thieves access to your computer, personal information, finances, and more. But with awareness as your safety net, you can minimize the chance of an Internet mishap. To be safer and more secure online, adopt these seven practices:

• Protect your personal information. It's valuable.
• Know whom you're dealing with.
• Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software, as well as a firewall, and update them all regularly.
• Make sure your operating system and web browser are set up properly and update them regularly.
• Protect your passwords.
• Back up important files.
• Learn who to contact if something goes wrong online

Social Networking Online
Social networking sites are the hippest new "meet markets," especially among tween, teens and 20-somethings. While these sites can increase a person's circle of friends, they also increase exposure to people with less-than-friendly intentions, including sexual predators.
Much more at the FCIC . . .

Society and Family Stressed

There has been a social trend in the richer parts of the world towards acquiring material assets over happiness. By way of media we are encouraged towards self-interest over interest in others and the spirit of the community, at least in the friendliest ways. As we increasingly devote our life efforts to acquiring more goods and services we are often in competition with friends, fellow workers and neighbors, wishing and striving for something new or better. We may want to be cool in the eyes of all that will regard us, and they might have similar aspirations.

If we struggle to earn more to acquire more we may be depriving ourselves of sufficient casual fun time with friends and most importantly, family. Along with this desire for more and better things comes more stress into our lives and into the lives of those around us. The family may become more fractured as we work long hours and the kids watch more TV programs and play video games. In this environment they will become even more commercialized than their parents, as marketing whets their appetites for more stuff.

Are we too busy doing the wrong things for the wrong reasons?

There are tremendous influences to continue along this path as it generates more corporate and personal profits which society has become so accustomed to 'need'. So we strive and stress on for new false achievements losing out on some true basic and pleasant experiences in life.

If we are in this endless routine we should consider what Marcus Aurelius had to say 1800 years ago, "Think of what you have rather than of what you lack. Of the things you have, select the best and then reflect how eagerly you would have sought them if you did not have them."

In other words it's a merry-go-round that we do not need to be on and should consider jumping from.

Geela Author at "The American Dream" asks
"From environmental pollution to spiritual pollution, from artificial food to artificial joy - these are the side effects of the pursuit of materialism (a by-product of the American Dream, as we know it). Today, everything is fair game in the pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain and personal responsibility, not to mention the absence of morality and a wholesome values system.?"

Tackling this problem as a whole society seems rather hopeless at this point in time as it is so entrenched, but there are ways. One suggestion is directing the young towards achieving happiness in lieu of buying more.

In Battling the roots of materialism by focusing on happiness Penny Nickel cites a study which "appears to suggest that even though many young people think having consumer goods is what makes them happy, if they start to feel better about themselves their focus will shift to non-materialistic priorities like friends and family. In other words, if a teen you know is begging for pricey items, you may be better off spending more quality time with them-- boosting their self-esteem, and thus increasing their relative appreciation of your company compared to the material goods-- rather than spending that extra time earning the money to buy them what they want."

The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family. ~ Thomas Jefferson

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