Every hour that children spend watching TV they see 21 commercials. For many kids, that's 40,000 commercials a year—and most of them are for foods that are not healthy.
Young children don't understand the goal of advertising, so they are more vulnerable to the messages. Advertisers want kids to nag their parents to buy the food.
Here are some things parents can do:
- Give your child a “TV allowance” to limit their exposure to food commercials. Kids should watch no more than one to two hours of TV per day. Have your children decide which programs they are going to watch with their allowance.
- Kids should not have TVs in their bedrooms. Children who have TVs in their bedrooms watch more than they should and parents often don't know what they are watching.
- The parents should be the ones to decide which foods are purchased in the grocery store and served in the home. Children may decide how much to eat.
- Talk with your children about the foods you serve. Explain that fruits and vegetables, cereals, tortillas, rice and other grains; low fat milk and cheese; and beans, meats and eggs are healthy and should be eaten often. Parents need to teach kids which foods are healthy.
- Tell your children that foods like soda, juice drinks, fast food, chips, pan dulce, doughnuts, cake, cookies, candy and fried foods are not as healthy as other foods. This is why you don't serve them often, even though they are advertised on television a lot.
It's tough when kids demand foods they see advertised. But parents can be firm and loving. To sooth the begging child at the grocery store, try writing down a list of the foods the children want and on a special occasion, such as a birthday, allow them to pick one appealing advertised item from the list.