'Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show' Episode 119: Mighty McDonald's Leaves An Indelible Impression
Don't doubt the massive power that McDonald's holds over kids
When you think about the most famous brands in the entire world that are almost universally recognized by virtually everyone who sees them, one particular brand rises to the very top--MCDONALD'S! There's no denying the saturation of the Golden Arches in the marketplace today, but there's scientific evidence now that shows this influence goes much deeper than mere recognition especially among children.
In Episode 119 of "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore", I highlight a study published in August 2007 that found children preferred food that was wrapped in paper with the McDonald's logo on it compared to the exact same food appearing in plain paper wrapping. It's an absolutely astonishing discovery and further solidifies the argument that many are making that McDonald's has a responsibility to encourage healthier food options for its young customer base.
Click on the "LISTEN NOW" link below or download it to your iPod to hear Episode 119:
McDonald's is a modern-day cultural phenomenon. No other business can claim such a strong foothold on the children of this world (except for maybe Disney, but that's debatable!). And with that great power there should be a responsibility to do something effective with it while still maintaining a profitable business model. The two are not mutually exclusive and offering healthy alternatives at the most famous fast food restaurant in the world is not an unreasonable request. And don't tell me they already do offer "healthy" choices because sugary salads and HFCS-infested caramel apple dippers don't count!
Creating the R Gym concept was a good start on the fitness end of things and so was donating $2 million to childhood obesity research. But those are merely window dressing on a problem that runs deeper than even McDonald's is willing to admit. Fast food makes you fatter--DUH! And yet representatives with the company want to claim eating the food at Mickey D's is part of a "balanced" diet. As John Stossel would say, give me a break!
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What do you make of this study revealing the marketing prowess of a company like McDonald's? Do you think they should use their popularity among the kids to begin educating and offering better food choices? Or it is perfectly fine for them to continue peddling burgers, French fries and milkshakes to serve the needs of their "growing" customer base? Talk about it in the show notes section of Episode 119 and let us know what YOU think!
Is there someone within the realm of diet, health and nutrition that you'd like to see me interview for "The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore?" I'm always open to suggestions for future interviewees, so don't hesitate to let me know if I've overlooked someone important you'd like to hear more about. Please e-mail me with your recommendation at livinlowcarbman@charter.net and I'll do my best to set it up. THANKS for listening to the Internet's #1 low-carb podcast show!
Labels: children, Jimmy Moore, kids, marketing, mcdonald's, podcast, research, study, The Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Show
posted by Jimmy Moore at
3/10/2008 05:41:00 PM
2 Comments:
Thanks for bringing this issue up.
We need to talk about these problems, and in a popular public forum like this blog, I think it can make a difference.
Companies need to know that consumers want to be served real healthy food, and not just fake carbage.
Unfortunately, when it comes to children, the parents have a lot to say about what their children eat. I have to tell you that I'm not a parent, but I have opportunities galore to observe. I'd say it would be easy to control the diet of children up to about the age of 10. After that, I truly believe parents have done all they can regading diet and other personality traits of children. We must also be reasonable in our expectation for the fast food industry to be a watch-dog for any member of the American population. It's not going to happen. They are part of our free-market society and they are going to market what makes money. After all, we are free to choose what we want in most areas of our lives.
You cannot scare, coerce(?), prod, plead or bargain when it comes to what people want to eat. Look what has happened to the "health" food market...it is virtually no better than fast food (just my opinion).
We just have to keep talking about it, show by our figures and physiques what can happen when using a low-carb diet and hopefully, vanity will kick in before our next generation destroys their health.
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