TV ADS AND CHILDHOOD OBESITY
by Anak TV
One would wish that the following scenario
happening in many parts of the world would also be true in the Philippines.
There is a growing number of broadcasting
companies, children's program producers and governments worldwide who have
begun taking a serious look at TV ads that peddle junk and which air during
hours traditionally assigned for kiddie programs.
Furthermore, the movement is beginning to confront a vast number of TV shows
that slyly use cartoon characters and mascots, a technique that blurs the line
between the commercial advertising and the shows themselves. It is common
knowledge that children, especially those in tender years up to nine, are
unable to differentiate fantasy from reality and are too vulnerable and
unprepared to become smart consumers.
If the movement hits the Philippines, expect a hue and cry
against such seemingly patently innocuous programs like Bi and Bo as well as Jollitown,
two colorful shows targeting little children but sponsored by well known food
companies.
Among the more recent radical developments include that of Discovery Kids which
has started to insist on a no junk food ad policy in its South American stations.
Discovery channel's younger network also airs in Asia and countless kids from Bahrain to Bangladesh, Pakistan to the Philippines tune in to it.
Even the revered Sesame Street has toned down its popular
Cookie Monster song. The line, “C is for Cookie” has been replaced with “A
Cookie is a Sometimes Food. “
There is increasing debate about the morals of junk-food advertising during
children's shows, and we await with bated breath when the long delayed movement
would finally reach Philippine shores.
What is particularly alarming is not so much the volume and increasing
frequency of junk food ads on television but that authorities expected to take
up the cudgels for the parents like DepEd, DOH or even BFAD have not convinced
fastfood companies and food manufacturers to consider coming up with
alternative and healthier foods targeting Pinoy kids. While America is offering
downsized or more dietary correct menus, our fastfood chains are going the
wrong direction, pushing for upsizing beverages, fried items and others.
In Dubai not too long ago, its national press club staged a seminar to discuss the role
of media in fighting obesity among UAE children. The UAE ministry of health was
part of the effort and so was UNICEF. They all succeeded in enlightening the
attendees on the various hazards and psychological impact of obesity among
kids, first by removing many deep-seated misconceptions, among them chubbiness
being an indicator of good health. No less than the UAE government led by its ruler
lent its imprimatur on the seminar so that the Arab society can finally
sensitize itself about obesity in children.
The consequential move in UAE now is to regulate TV
ads targeted at kids and to enlarge the scope of regulatory mechanisms which only
previously included tobacco and alcohol.
In the end, the UAE seminar concluded that “the
media have a big role in sensitizing the society on the perils of obesity among
the tiny ones. It is a mission too important to be left to some organizations and
government bodies alone.”
In rural Philippines, it is customary to
have neighbors fondly ogle at fat children, branding them cute and adorable.
Hence, we have an exaggerated focus on showering kids with food, as though
equating overfeeding with pampering and showing them love. The findings of the
Department of Health are itself alarming. The incidence of adult diseases in
Filipino children is rising. It is becoming commonplace to hear about kids as
young as twelve suffering from diabetes, even high blood pressure.
Media is a likely culprit. Irresponsible
advertising is equally culpable.
