It is the parent's responsibility to control what their children eat. Advertisements for fast food has been specifically targeted for children and have proved to be very successful. We live in a day and age where we have very little control of what is being advertised to us. When it comes to the fast food industry targeting our children, however, it is the parents responsibility to guide their child to make better choices. There are so many options from promoting healthy eating at home to educating everyone in the household about what they are actually putting in their mouth. The main goal for fast food restaurants is to sell and have consumers come back for more. Parents should be able to recognize the "mental attack" towards their children and stand in the way of corporate manipulation. Parents are responsible for their children's safety as well as what they put in their system.
"Synergy" is a marketing strategy pioneered by non other than Walt Disney himself. He aimed for children as his audience to attract them to his theme parks and products. Since the 1930's when synergy began, it has come a long way from advertising Mickey Mouse commercials to being adapted by Mcdonalds, shoe companies, and clothing lines. To make children be a loyal customer at a young age and carry that loyalty through adulthood is the concept that synergy was based on. The parents have the responsibility to recognize this manipulation and say no to their children if necessary. Ultimately, it is the parents who will end up buying products for their children if they cave in. That's what these companies are hoping for.
Parents need to monitor their children's television viewing time and what they watch. Our world revolves around television and the majority of advertisements are being displayed right there in everyone's living room. What better way for advertisers to take advantage than at the comfort of your own home? On page 46, Eric Schlosser states, "The typical American child spends twenty-one hours a week watching television." What a great window of opportunity to target children! Children cannot see the difference between being exploited and entertained. The parents can! It's their responsibility to either turn off the advertisements being forced into their child's brain or at least limit their time on watching television.
There are so many responsibilities to take on as a parent and promoting a healthy environment is one of them. Children learn from those around them but mostly from their parents. With the convenience of fast food restaurants, it's much easier to go out and get fed by unknown hands than it is to bother with groceries, cooking, and cleaning. That takes away time from being spent with family members. That's teaching our children that eating out is better than being with the ones you love. By promoting healthy eating and cooking at home, we can teach our children to cook for themselves. Anyone can go out and buy the same products over and over again, but nobody can cook the way a parent can for their family. As a parent caring for what their children eat, you are taking responsibility and care for our child's needs.
The fast food industry and major corporations invest billions of dollars to targeting children all around the world to buy their products. It has happened to you, me, and will not stop anytime soon. You see products advertised on the subway, sides of MTA busses, almost everywhere you go as soon as you step outside your house. Realize that children all over the world see the same thing. The purpose is to target you and children all over the world so they can make money for generations to come. That's all the more work parents have to know about what's being sold to them and their families. Teaching them that the food being advertised to them is just frozen packaged food made at a New Jersey turnpike. A parent should let their children know that the food that looks delicious on television might cause them all kinds of health complications in the future. Saying no when you know it is not right for them to watch extreme amounts of television is never bad. That's being a responsible parent and it is the parents who are responsible for their children's well being.
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