Foods advertise online to your kids.

I was reading more about the Marketing to kids report (pdf downloadable) that the Federal Trade Commission released earlier this week. In my previous blog, I mentioned the dollars spent on advertising but what about the actual advertising?

Here is what the report found:

• the high sugar and high fat food companies are advertising on popular kids websites like Disney.com
• high sugar cereals amongst other food companies have created websites just for kids
• kids play on this website for an average of 23 minutes a month
• kids watch webisodes of characters promoting their high sugar or high fat foods
• display ads generated 2 BILLION impressions on kids websites
• display ads generated 9 BILLION impressions on teens websites

So what does this mean to us parents. How do we compete with that. Well, first we have to accept the fact that internet and computer time is going to be a part of a child's life. It's today and tomorrow's technology. This is the generation of digitalization.

I think as the old saying goes, "If you can't beat um, you gotta join them" We have to step into their world and websites and healthy food companies need to work together to make nutrition fun.

This is the whole reason I started my website that is devoted to making nutrition fun for kids. We have to provide kids with other messages. We have to provide you parents with alternate quality sites that you can allow your child to play on.

Just imagine if in stead of spending 23 minutes playing a game that messages "look for me the sugary character, it's fun and eating me is fun... What if those 23 minutes was spent playing games that had characters that like to eat a balanced meal, games that promoted the importance and fun of eating vegetables and fruits?  Hmm, what if we gave the children a fun, new message about healthy eating. Would it make a dfference.

Kids need to start hearing positive messaging about nutrition from different sources.  We can work together to promote healthy eating and activity. Here is another good article that talks about this advertising to kids.