Cartoon Characters Sell Kids On Unhealthy Foods
Heaven soon
Cartoon
Characters Sell Kids On Unhealthy
Foods
Popular cartoon characters are
influencing the
taste preferences of very young
children, and
not in a positive way, a new study
suggests.
Researchers found that the branding of
American food product packaging with
characters such as Dora the Explorer
drives
preschoolers to choose higher-calorie,
less
healthful foods over more nutritious
options.
"The bottom line is that when kids are
presented with a choice of graham
crackers,
fruit snacks or carrots, and the only
difference is that one package has a
licensed
character on it, they actually think
that the
food with the character tastes
better,"
said study author Christina Roberto, a
doctoral student working at the Rudd
Center
for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale
University
in New Haven, Conn. The findings,
reported
online June 21 in Pediatrics,
reflect
on the food preferences of 4- to
6-year-old
boys and girls who found foods tastier
when
the packaging bore the likenesses of
beloved
TV and movie characters.
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