Does TV Influence What Your Kids Eat?

Without even reading the article, I had to answer “how can it not?” especially if they are of the age to watch TV with commercials. Isn’t that the goal of large food conglomerates who spend millions in advertising during kids TV shows? And it’s not just food, it’s games, toys, clothes, anything marketed to kids with messages they see over and over again.

It comes down to, like everything, parental supervision and limiting the time they spend in front of the TV. I for one am thankful for Nick Jr. with its no commercials.  I think more kids channels should be commercial free during certain hours of the day. But, I’m a realist. And I know this won’t happen. I’m still wowed that Nick Jr is still commercial free and hasn’t caved yet.

Taken from: Kids Eat Right

by Susan Moores, MS RD

TV time can take a toll on your child’s nutrition. Why? Many kids spend a fair amount of time in front of the television and research shows they are easily swayed to choose the foods they see advertised. Some of the foods shown in commercials don’t do them any favors when it comes to feeding their growing brains and bodies. Many are high in fat, sugar, sodium and/or calories and they often lack vitamins, minerals and fiber.

In fact, a recent study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that, on average, eating foods typically advertised on TV provided more than three times the amount of sugars and two and a half times the amount of fat a person should have in a day.

How can you tame TV temptations?

Karen Ansel, MS, RD, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association offers these tips:

• Watch commercials with your kids. Ask them what they think of the foods being pitched and what might be some tasty (more healthful) options. When kids are making choices, “health” and “nutrition” are not big motivators so link healthful foods with things your kids care about, like foods that will help them run faster, jump higher, be stronger, etc.
• Avoid diss-ing “junk” foods. Kids won’t respond to it and it may actually work against you. Restricting or bad-mouthing these types of foods can actually increase your child’s interest in them.
• Help your kids learn more about their foods. Teach them to look at an ingredient list and suggest that together you “see what’s inside” an advertised food they want to try. It’s a great way to discuss the nutrient value of a food.
• Bring the kiddos into the kitchen. And have them jump in to help out. Kids are naturally curious. Take advantage of their desire for discovery to clue them in on the amazing flavors, shapes and colors of healthful foods.
• Turn off the tube at mealtime. Family meals are a prime opportunity to establish great eating habits, great conversations and great feelings about healthful foods. The family is a major influence on what and how kids eat. As parents, it’s your job to decide what foods are available to eat and what is offered at a meal. Your kids pick up on your food preferences and your attitudes about food. Give them some positive impressions.
• Put a few parameters around TV time. TV can become the default activity for kids – something easy to do for long periods of time. Set a few guidelines for when and how much television is OK. Instead of simply telling kids to turn off the TV, have a few fun options to take its place, ideally ones that get kids up and active.

 

Parents Might Not Have Much Influence Over Kids Food Choices

Ut oh! The LA Times recently ran an article which states that parents don’t have that much influence over their kids eating habits. How is this possible? I know we spend a lot of time here discussing healthy food choices, making food appealing and the effects food choices have on kids. I’ve got to hope that the good we’re doing now, while they are still young, will benefit is down the line when TV, internet and friends become a larger influence in their lives.

Taken from LA Times.com. By Shari Roan, Los Angeles Times. December 8, 2010, 1:35 p.m.

Parents are instructed to cook healthful foods, hold regular mealtimes and limit snacking in order to raise healthy, normal-weight children. Certainly parental influence — and the examples parents set — matters. But a new study suggests that parents are fighting many other forces in trying to help their children eat healthful diets.

A study published Wednesday reviewed 24 studies on parents’ influence on their children’s eating habits. The studies covered populations around the world from 1980 to 2009. The authors, from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, found that parental influence appeared to have grown weaker over time. Parent-child correlations regarding caloric intake and fat consumption are weaker in the United States compared with other countries.

The lack of parental influence “is likely because young people’s eating patterns are influenced by many complex factors, and the family environment plays only a partial role,” said Dr. Youfa Wang, the lead author of the study. “More attention should be given to the influence of the other players on children’s eating patterns, such as that of schools, the local food environment and peer influence, government guidelines and policies that regulate school meals, and the broader food environment that is influenced by food production, distribution and advertising.”

The study appears in the December issue of the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.