Proper health and nutrition is of critical importance to the growth and development of young children yet many American children eat in ways that do not meet proper nutrition guidelines. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the media, and its promotion of junk food, is one of the main culprits in the obesity epidemic. Read the article, “Children, Adolescents, Obesity, and the Media,” and watch the video, We’re Not Buying It: Stop Junk Food Marketing to Kids (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..

In your post, address the following:

1. What role does the media play in the promotion of unhealthy food choices? Identify and describe a specific example.
2. What are the long-term consequences of these media messages on children’s health and nutrition?
3. Describe two to three specific things parents and teachers of young children can do to combat media messages that promote unhealthy food choices.

Answer preview

Media is associated with the promotion of unhealthy food choices because of the many advertisements of fast foods and unhealthy snacks like candies, sodas, and chips. These adverts are much more as compared to the advertisements on healthy food choices. These advertisements influence the children to want to eat more of this advertised junk food. Due to busy families where both parents are sometimes working full time they have little time for dinner, and they turn to buying junk food from fast food which advertised family food deals at a low price. Some deals like two pizzas for one can be a great deal for these families. There are some advertisements on McDonald’s Burger King which is also an example of fast food.

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