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Personally, I think that current societal culture is to blame for obesity, not just fast food or pop or convenience stores or the proliferation of TVs everywhere. Granted those do play their part in the problem, and remember that advertising for these products does work (else we'd have a new form of advertising because companies are, after all, out to make the biggest profit possible), but the underlaying problem is why we let this behaviour continue, even when we know there will be adverse consequences.
We've been brought in a liberalist environment where the emphasis is on the individual, with all that rhetoric about individual choice and freedom and whatnot. This is great at the political level, but it's infused our social relations as well to produce a downside, which I can very easily spot in my and the younger generations (I'm 22). This downside is we've come to expect and think we deserve anything and everything that is available to us, without a thought for the consequences. We should have everything our little hearts desire. We deserve everything we want. We've a right to it. And there cannot possibly be a bad consequence! Why? Where are the privileges? Why do we no longer think that we actually have to work for something, to earn it?
I think that the work ethic so prevalent among my grandparents and parents' generations have gone by the wayside, for many people... particularly in those who grow up in an affluent (or think they're affluent) environment. Everything has to be bigger and better and more dollar-effective - who cares if it's bad for the health so long as it's cheaper than the alternative? I'm not saying that money or the pursuit of profit is the root of all evil here, but rather that we've been acculturated to the need for efficiency - spend less and get more, save as much time as possible so you can do more and more things...
The majority of two-parent households are also dual income, and I think this also plays a role. There is a marked lack of authority figures, I think, in children's lives today. Parents are supposed to be respected and obeyed, not the other way around... I see examples everyday of parents catering to their child's whim, just because they don't want a tantrum or they think their child should have everything or for whatever reason I still cannot fathom because I'm not yet a parent. This is how children learn that they should be entitled to everything, and thus emotionally cannot accept a 'no' as response when they're 'grownup'. Personally, I think our society has diminished the role of parent so much that children are supposed to be treated like mini-adults - which I totally disagree with. A child's mind is just not mature enough - parents are supposed to teach children how to act properly, how to think rationally and logically, how to interact socially, and I think we often forget this. And yes, discipline and punishment is a very important part of a child's development - how else will they learn that there are, sometimes, undesirable consequences to their actions, and that is just a fact of life? Children are not born knowing right from wrong; they learn from those closest to them and are heavily, heavily influenced by what they see (studies have shown that kids who watch violent TV shows are more violent with their peers - because they've seen this as the way to get what they want.)
Personally, I don't think there should be any advertising aimed at kids under 12, because they just haven't finished developing their mental capabilities to deal with it like an adult would. It's unfair, really. And while I don't believe the government should legislate our everyday lives, sometimes it's necessary to impose restrictions because people just don't care about or understand the consequences - after all, we're taught it's all about us. We have to alter how we think as a societal whole to change the system.
And yes, children should get more exercise, and stop watching TV 5 hours a day. But this is also the parent's responsibility - it seems many parents forget that they are, after all, responsible for their kids development, and if they turn into a whiny, bratty, demanding, fat kid, yes, it is their fault. Genes do play a role, but so does upbringing.
Not to insult any parents out there reading this of course.... these are perceptions of a young adult on society in general, looking from the outside in on parenthood.
We've been brought in a liberalist environment where the emphasis is on the individual, with all that rhetoric about individual choice and freedom and whatnot. This is great at the political level, but it's infused our social relations as well to produce a downside, which I can very easily spot in my and the younger generations (I'm 22). This downside is we've come to expect and think we deserve anything and everything that is available to us, without a thought for the consequences. We should have everything our little hearts desire. We deserve everything we want. We've a right to it. And there cannot possibly be a bad consequence! Why? Where are the privileges? Why do we no longer think that we actually have to work for something, to earn it?
I think that the work ethic so prevalent among my grandparents and parents' generations have gone by the wayside, for many people... particularly in those who grow up in an affluent (or think they're affluent) environment. Everything has to be bigger and better and more dollar-effective - who cares if it's bad for the health so long as it's cheaper than the alternative? I'm not saying that money or the pursuit of profit is the root of all evil here, but rather that we've been acculturated to the need for efficiency - spend less and get more, save as much time as possible so you can do more and more things...
The majority of two-parent households are also dual income, and I think this also plays a role. There is a marked lack of authority figures, I think, in children's lives today. Parents are supposed to be respected and obeyed, not the other way around... I see examples everyday of parents catering to their child's whim, just because they don't want a tantrum or they think their child should have everything or for whatever reason I still cannot fathom because I'm not yet a parent. This is how children learn that they should be entitled to everything, and thus emotionally cannot accept a 'no' as response when they're 'grownup'. Personally, I think our society has diminished the role of parent so much that children are supposed to be treated like mini-adults - which I totally disagree with. A child's mind is just not mature enough - parents are supposed to teach children how to act properly, how to think rationally and logically, how to interact socially, and I think we often forget this. And yes, discipline and punishment is a very important part of a child's development - how else will they learn that there are, sometimes, undesirable consequences to their actions, and that is just a fact of life? Children are not born knowing right from wrong; they learn from those closest to them and are heavily, heavily influenced by what they see (studies have shown that kids who watch violent TV shows are more violent with their peers - because they've seen this as the way to get what they want.)
Personally, I don't think there should be any advertising aimed at kids under 12, because they just haven't finished developing their mental capabilities to deal with it like an adult would. It's unfair, really. And while I don't believe the government should legislate our everyday lives, sometimes it's necessary to impose restrictions because people just don't care about or understand the consequences - after all, we're taught it's all about us. We have to alter how we think as a societal whole to change the system.
And yes, children should get more exercise, and stop watching TV 5 hours a day. But this is also the parent's responsibility - it seems many parents forget that they are, after all, responsible for their kids development, and if they turn into a whiny, bratty, demanding, fat kid, yes, it is their fault. Genes do play a role, but so does upbringing.
Not to insult any parents out there reading this of course.... these are perceptions of a young adult on society in general, looking from the outside in on parenthood.
but really if these kids are desperate enough they will find a way to get sugar....
