They Say: Fast-Food Ads Contribute to Child Obesity

A new study published in the Journal of Law and Economics links obesity rates to the amount of fast-food ads kids see when watching television. Unlike other studies, which have suggested a connection between time spent watching TV and obesity, the new research looks solely at the fast-food advertising and its effect on kids' weight problems. Despite criticism from business spokespeople that the study used old data from the 1990s, before McDonalds and Burger King changed their advertising practices, the study's authors are pushing for a reduction in the tax-deduction status of such marketing messages.

From the New York Times article: 

Kelly Brownell, director of  Yale University's 
Rudd Center for Food Policy, said reliable estimates of television’s
impact on childhood obesity are hard to calculate because of the many
assumptions statisticians must make. "That said, food marketing is a
blight on the landscape of our children and has been shown time and
again to have a negative impact," he added.

It's hard to argue with that, though I wonder whether we're putting too much emphasis on what's on the TV rather than the choice to use it at all. As a second Times article points out in reporting on another study, the chief difference in how happy people spend their time versus unhappy people (as self-reported by study participants) is that they watch less television. I'm as guilty as the next mother of occasionally turning to the electronic babysitter, but it's a good reminder that turning off the tube has myriad benefits for our kids' mental health, not just their weight.