San Francisco Chronicle - Fast Food's Relentless Marketing

October 17, 2010

 

Let's be clear - the playing field isn't level for children and parents when it comes to fast-food choices. As a practicing pediatrician at San Francisco General Hospital, I see the health effects of the cheap, accessible and unhealthy fast food relentlessly marketed toward my patients. Some favor leaving parents alone (see the Oct. 10 submission in Letters to Insight) with the burden of competing against a fast-food industry that spends $360 million annually on toys targeting their kids.

 

But this overlooks an important part of the story. In addition, we have to ask why it is that fast-food restaurants insist on promoting some kids' meals that ignore the healthy meal sizes and ingredients recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Institute of Medicine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

 

If we can't separate toys from fast food entirely, offering toys just in meals that are actually kid-size and kid-appropriate is a reasonable middle ground. The bottom line: If fast-food corporations want the privilege of advertising meals specifically to children, they have a responsibility to ensure that those meals are actually appropriate for healthy kids.