The Kids Menu: America’s Youth and the Western Diet

With many parents leading busy lives and working outside of the home, the concept of cooking freshly made meals is often put on the back burner. For families with kids, coming up with simple meal options that kids will enjoy can be a significant challenge, so turning to fast food often seems like an easy solution. It is apparent that this trend is causing serious health problems among youth and adults alike. However, the most alarming statistics surrounding eating-related health problems pertain to children. Childhood obesity rates have tripled since the 1970s and as many as one in five young Americans between the ages of 6 and 19 has type two diabetes. Less than three decades ago, this form of diabetes was known solely by the name “adult-onset diabetes” because it was so rarely seen in children. While some may argue that eating a healthy, nutritious diet is out of reach for many Americans due to time constraints or a lack of resources, these factors should not prevent parents from providing a healthy diet for their kids. Feeding today’s youth a balanced diet of fresh, healthy foods is the first step to reverse the grim track that America is on today in terms of preventable diseases linked to excess weight.

As can be observed in many households in the US and around the globe, kids crave the fatty, sugary foods provided by fast food restaurants and convenience stores. This phenomenon stems back to the time when humans functioned as hunter-gatherers, and fats and sugars were sparse yet coveted commodities. However, in a society where processed foods dominate the food industry, these instincts still linger. We can’t blame children for desiring these unhealthy foods, but it is simply unfair to allow overindulgence on foods that, in the long run, lead to pain and suffering in the form of disease. One example of a family experiencing this situation can be seen in episode two of Michael Pollan’s Cooked. A working-class family in India describes their efforts to promote healthy eating habits for their children. According to the parents, even when they make fresh, home cooked meals, the kids beg to get fast food instead. If allowed to maintain this mentality, the eating habits of the next generation will only become worse. The processed food epidemic can only be altered through a change in mindset of the youngest generation.  

            The 2016 documentary The Kids Menu highlights the many ways in which kids can be influenced about their food choices, in turn creating change in the diets of their entire families. In order to bring about these ideas, the documentary sheds light on America’s flawed food system. From the disconnect between people and the foods that they eat to the lack of options made available and the ways in which products are marketed, people eventually lose control of what they are eating. These troubling situations raise the question, how can the food culture among school-aged children be altered to reduce intake of processed foods, in turn changing the way that America eats?

In order to give kids and parents alike a fair chance at choosing healthy products over highly processed ones, greater regulation in the marketing and advertising of food is needed. In 2010, the World Health Organization (WHO) created a set of 12 recommendations to help reduce the impact that food and non-alcoholic beverage marketing has on children. This marketing plan focuses specifically on reducing the marketing of foods containing unhealthy levels of saturated fat, trans fat, sugar, and salt. The recommendations go on to state that individual governments should develop policy surrounding marketing of such products. In addition, the WHO provides specifications on enforcement and evaluation of marketing regulations. Despite these recommendations, marketing of highly processed foods in the United States and other nations remains present at alarmingly high rates. Sugary cereals and snack foods such as cookies and crackers are just a few examples of foods that are marketed towards children and adolescents. By embracing the marketing policies set forth by the WHO, we can give kids the opportunity to view foods for what they really are and make choices based on knowledge rather than the lures of unethical marketing practices.

The implications of such marketing techniques are well documented with a number of organizations including the American Psychological Association. For example, children ages 8-12 are exposed to about 21 advertisements for unhealthy, processed foods each day across various forms of media including television, internet, and print sources. In comparison, the same age group is only exposed to one public service announcement about healthy, unprocessed foods every two to three days. As a result, every additional hour of TV watched leads to higher rates of consumption of “sugar-sweetened beverages, fast food, red and processed meat, and overall calories”. Leveling the playing field in food marketing will allow people to take control over what they eat by reducing negative influences from everything from pop culture and celebrities to nutritionist ideals. Furthermore, taking greater lengths to market fresh produce and whole grains will round out the changes to food system marketing. Changing the way that products are marketed in the US and other countries is just one step that can be taken to alter the way that children view food products and make choices on what to eat.

In addition to a stark change in food marketing practices, kids can be influenced based on what they learn in school. As described in the documentary The Kids Menu, over 100,000 public schools exist in America, and it is vital that children in each and every one of these schools receives comprehensive nutrition education. While states and school districts have requirements for food education, such lessons regarding healthy eating are often taught in a dry, unengaging environment that doesn’t serve its purpose to inspire change in the way kids eat. As exemplified in the documentary, this does not have to be the case. The most successful way to get kids excited about healthy eating is by allowing them to help prepare it. Giving every school-aged child the chance to learn how to prepare healthy snacks is what will inspire them to carry these practices over to their homes. While some people may suspect that kids have little influence over what they eat at home, The Kids Menu shows an example of how quite the opposite is often true. The documentary highlights one family that ate a diet high in processed foods until the elementary-school-aged daughter asked for change. She had learned how to make smoothies, celery with hummus, and other healthy alternatives to processed snack foods at school. When she came home with recipes, enthusiastic about eating foods that are healthy for her body, her parents changed their shopping habits, creating a healthier diet for the entire family.  

When shopping for food, some low-income families are forced to simply buy whatever is cheapest. Some people may even frown upon people using food stamps to buy healthy foods, which are sometimes viewed as luxuries. However, a number of programs exist that can help families to make purchasing foods for a healthy diet a reality. For example, the Wholesome Wave program, which is currently most active on the east coast and in California, doubles the value of food stamps that are used to purchase fresh produce. Additionally, Wholesome Wave offers a produce prescription program which allows doctors to prescribe eating more fruits and vegetables, which are paid for by the program, instead of traditional medications. By supporting the positive efforts of groups such as these, we can increase the availability of healthy foods, giving families of all income levels the chance to eat a nutritious diet.

With the highest ever rates of childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes, America’s trajectory for overall health of the population is grim. Children who are raised on unhealthy, processed food diets are likely to maintain these habits for the rest of their life, likely leading to eventual sickness and even premature death. Surprisingly, the solutions to this problem are actually simpler than some may expect. We must change the way that our youngest generation understands food and eating habits. By altering marketing practices, changing the way in which nutrition is taught in schools, and supporting programs to bring fresh, wholesome foods to low-income families, we can get America out of the processed food rut.

Dana Baughman

1,393 words