Is a Ban on Happy Meal Toys Taking It Too Far?

[Athena]

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – A California county is stopping restaurants from using toys to lure children to high-calorie, salt-laden food such as popular "Happy Meals" hawked by fast-food giant McDonald's.

Elected officials in the county of Santa Clara, in the heart of technology center Silicon Valley south of San Francisco, voted Tuesday to enact the ban to fight an "obesity epidemic" sweeping California and the United States.

"This ordinance prevents restaurants from preying on children's love of toys to peddle high-calorie, high-fat, high-sodium kids meals," said Ken Yeager, the county supervisor behind the ban.

"This ordinance breaks the link between unhealthy food and prizes."

~ snip ~

Harlan Levy of McDonald's was part of a fast-food restaurant contingent that turned out to oppose the ban.

"It substitutes the county's judgment for the judgment of parents," Levy told the board. "It does nothing to address a holistic response to the problem."

For example, the ban doesn't change sedentary lifestyles that have children sitting watching television or playing videogames, Levy argued.

...and my least favorite quote from the article...

"It is easy to say that we as parents should make the decision but kids can be so persuasive."

Source

If your kids can be soooo persuasive that they control not only their diet but their entertainment (watching TV vs. riding a bike), you've got no business rearing them.

They're taking away TOYS, for christ's sake. This is deplorable.

[Aslan]

So let me get this straight.
A town in the middle of Silicon Valley (filled with computer geeks who have nothing else to brag about except their computer tan and *'really cool World of Warcraft avatars') is trying to get children in shape?

I bet that's going over like a fart in a car.

* I play Wow, I can make fun of players such as myself.
You're blocking my sun.

[Saffron]

I disagree, I wish McDonald's didn't have toys in Happy Meals. I take my kids to McDonald's occasionally but the incessant whining and crying for 5-10 minutes begging me to take them there EVERY SINGLE TIME they see a McDonald's sign (just to let you know, there is a McDonald's both of the ways to my house -- so EVERY DAY) just so they can have the toys drives me nuts. It would be a blessing and it is the way that they brainwash kids into liking them. I've thought that the food has always tasted like ass (except the fries) my entire life... they didn't invent the Happy Meal until I was too old to order one. My brother and every other person I know who grew up after the Happy Meal thinks it's the best food ever just like McDonald's programmed them to do... it's why Camel invented Joe Camel...

[Echo]

I disagree, I wish McDonald's didn't have toys in Happy Meals. I take my kids to McDonald's occasionally but the incessant whining and crying for 5-10 minutes begging me to take them there EVERY SINGLE TIME they see a McDonald's sign (just to let you know, there is a McDonald's both of the ways to my house -- so EVERY DAY) just so they can have the toys drives me nuts. It would be a blessing and it is the way that they brainwash kids into liking them. I've thought that the food has always tasted like ass (except the fries) my entire life... they didn't invent the Happy Meal until I was too old to order one. My brother and every other person I know who grew up after the Happy Meal thinks it's the best food ever just like McDonald's programmed them to do... it's why Camel invented Joe Camel...

I couldn't have said it better. Joe Camel: Cigarettes. McDonald's: Ronald Mc Donald, the hamburger selling clown that gives you a disney toy. McDonald's are geniuses when it comes to marketing to children.

Did you read Fast Food Nation Saff? So eye opening and really creepy.

[Aslan]

Well that's what capitalism is all about. Selling your wares in an attempt to make money. They are no doubt in some sense relying on parents like you who give in just to stop the complaining and begging.
Let me ask you this, do your children eat Cracker Jacks? That has a toy. Do you buy cereal that has toys inside?
Do you provide a quarter or 2 for them to mess with the bubblegum machines in the supermarket? (The last time I checked, they had toys in them)

It's part of being a kid. *shrug*. Hell, my parents used to use it as a bribe 'won't get this until your chores are done' and such. Made me not like happy meals because my mom's paws went through it before I could even eat:)
I will be really surprised if this stands up in court.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

My kids learned that McDonald's was a special treat. Whining would never earn a special treat. Ever. They were more likely to try and manipulate me into it with smiles and sudden goody-two-shoes acts. Which often didn't work either ("sudden angels" is just as obvious as whining - but less annoying and a better life skill).

I feel sorry for the citizens of Santa Clara county. Their government obviously thinks they are too stupid to make decisions and rear children. They should just take the kids away since the parents are so ill suited.

[Aslan]

Our special treat was the What-A-burger out of town (about 45 minutes one way)
We all had to have been well behaved for at least a week (though I think my mom just loved the place and used that as an excuse)
Good stuff. No toys.
It was so good, we actually behaved ourselves to get a burger from there.

[Echo]

You've got to love AdBusters.......

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Anyone who thinks taking away the toys is going to stop kids from whining about going to a fast food joint is delusional. Anyone who lets their kids whine them into a decision has bigger problems than fast food. That is a learned behavior. Where did they learn it from? Not McDonald's.

[Echo]

Anyone who thinks taking away the toys is going to stop kids from whining about going to a fast food joint is delusional. Anyone who lets their kids whine them into a decision has bigger problems than fast food. That is a learned behavior. Where did they learn it from? Not McDonald's.

Of course they learned it a lot of it from McDonald's and so did their parents as they were aggressively marketed to when they were children.

If Camel cannot advertise a product that kills you with a cartoon character then why should McDonald's be allowed to market their product (which is truly the biggest cause of diabetes, heart disease, and obesity in the US) to children?

If their clown and disney marketing and commercials that have ALWAYS been geared toward children did not work to increase their sales than why do they spend literally billions of dollars on marketing and advertising? And why is most of their advertising directed at kids?

Its not that simple. I'm sorry but its not.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Toys are not illegal for kids, cigarettes are. They are not banning the food. Food choices should not be ruled by law. There is nothing wrong with an ocassional fast food meal. A diet of fast food is another issue. Educate them, not legislate them.

It IS as simple as teaching your children what is good for them and how to get what you want in life. Babies learn that crying gets them fed. Parents that let that behavior continue into the time where a kid knows what McDonald's is are doing their kids a disservice.

Just because they advertise something to make you want it does not mean you get it. Blaming your own bad decisions on advertising is ridiculous.

[Echo]

Toys are not illegal for kids, cigarettes are. They are not banning the food. Food choices should not be ruled by law. There is nothing wrong with an ocassional fast food meal. A diet of fast food is another issue. Educate them, not legislate them.

It IS as simple as teaching your children what is good for them and how to get what you want in life. Babies learn that crying gets them fed. Parents that let that behavior continue into the time where a kid knows what McDonald's is are doing their kids a disservice.

Just because they advertise something to make you want it does not mean you get it. Blaming your own bad decisions on advertising is ridiculous.

I hear your argument and understand what you are saying, but some parents are eating this food as regularly as their children. Big Food spends 10 BILLION dollars per year on advertising and McDonalds aggressively advertises to children. It's fast, convenient, and cheap.

Their product is killing more people in America than smoking is. The food is not banned, but selling the food with a toy is definitely unethical in my opinion. Can you imagine the uproar if cigarettes came with a "Free Disney Toy"? There is no difference between this and fast food. 10 billion a year is not being spent on educating children (and some adults) on eating healthy, its being spent on peddling food to them that is trash and is truly killing them.

That is the thing with McD's, it seems innocuous enough but it isn't.

[Echo]

More From Adbusters:

[Silvahalo]

I managed to keep my first child away from fast food until he was 3 yo (no easy feat), and kept him on a healthy load of fresh fruit/veggies and yogurt as snacks. By the time he was more influenced by TV and friends, he was so accustomed to the foods I exposed him to early on that burgers and fries were for the most a passing fancy.

My second child is an EXTREMELY picky eater so only on occasion will he eat fries so I don't have much worries with him at this time, he has NEVER eaten meat even from baby food, lol, so no burgers for him, at leas not yet. My 6 yo now asks for happy meals almost entirely for the prize but has gotten wise that the toys pretty much suck so he doesn't ask for them often and besides with his great eating habits much well established he usually eats chicken nuggets and the oranges, doesn't much care for fries. That doesn't mean he hasn't had his phases of only wanting mc'd burgers which thank god was short lived!

Can't say enough on how important it is to establish healthy eating habits with a child pretty much as they begin to eat solid foods. The toys are only part of the attraction to high fat kids meals. If a child is accustomed to eating high fat foods at home he will crave that much anywhere, add a toy, splashing TV ads, yep, they will get hooked and use the annoying technique of whining to get what they want.

[moonlilly1981]

As a parent part of our job is to just say no. My daughter is sitting here and you can ask her if she whined for mcdonalds what the answer would be, or how often her and her brother get it. From her "not alot"

[Echo]

Don't get me wrong....I know adbusters is considered an extremist magazine but they really do open some of the most jaded eyes and back everything up with facts. Fast Food, like tobacco, has been taking a major health toll on people for a very long time. If cigarettes can be so taxed and reigned in than why not fast food?

Coulrophobia, the fear of clowns, has an unusually high incidence among young children. Psychologists attribute it to the melding of a clown’s grotesque features with human form. One clown, however, seems to inspire nothing but universal delight in his young fans despite his role in disfiguring “billions and billions” of human forms. A recent study tabulated by the US Center for Disease Control reveals that obesity now officially outranks smoking as the number one killer in the US and the group it’s most affecting is children. Over 30% of American children are classified as obese, putting them at risk for the kinds of diseases that traditionally plague middle-aged adults: heart disease, sleep apnea, diabetes and cancer. Though an increasingly sedentary lifestyle is partly to blame, overconsumption of food high in fat, sugar and salt is the primary culprit. Children weaned on a diet of cheap convenience – like the Happy Meals™ pimped by their favorite clown – are essentially programmed for a lifetime of unhealthy eating habits. And that’s the exact objective a fast-food chain like McDonald’s is trying to achieve, which explains why children are targeted so heavily in their marketing campaigns

Once hooked, children are customers for life. It seems clowns really are evil.

https://www.adbusters.org/magazine/88/mcterror.html

[totallytoddler]

When I was a kid the happy meal at McDonald's didn't come with a toy..it came with cookies. McDonald's cookies shaped like Ronald, Grimace, Mayor McCheese, and the Hamburgler. (LOL) They were yummy....and I'm sure full of fat and sugar on top of the burger and fries.
So at least the toy is calorie and fat free. My kids get McD's or BK once a month as a treat only, and they always get the chicken, apple dippers, no fries...and either the lowfat milk or juice. No soda.
Honestly if there were no toys...they wouldn't want to eat there. The McDonald's that wants to take away the toys are stupid. My kids could really care less about their food...I can make chicken nuggets and apples at home.

I don't give into the whining....that only makes it worse for them. But it IS annoying that they put a McDonald's in all the Walmarts around here.....right on the way out. But I have no problem saying no.

[Echo]

Honestly if there were no toys...they wouldn't want to eat there

Exactly! And McDonald's knows that. You are not the first parent I have heard say that in this thread. The toy and the playground are what the kids like........and then they grow into adults and life long customers.

Fast Food Nation.....that book really opened my eyes.

[moonlilly1981]

I just dont see where it is our governments place to tell us what we can and cant eat. What we can and can't give our children. That is my choice as a parent, not my state reps. Anything can be bad for you if you allow it. McNasty I mean McDonald's in moderation is okay. Many places with childrens meals have some sort of reward to keep the child entertained.

[Echo]

I just dont see where it is our governments place to tell us what we can and cant eat. What we can and can't give our children. That is my choice as a parent, not my state reps. Anything can be bad for you if you allow it. McNasty I mean McDonald's in moderation is okay. Many places with childrens meals have some sort of reward to keep the child entertained.

Why then is everyone okay with cigarettes being taxed to death, smoking being banned everywhere imaginable, and Big Tobacco having to lose Joe Camel?

What is the difference between that and fast food?

Honest question.

[moonlilly1981]

Why then is everyone okay with cigarettes being taxed to death, smoking being banned everywhere imaginable, and Big Tobacco having to lose Joe Camel?

What is the difference between that and fast food?

Honest question.

Tabacco is not needed to live. It is a luxary. More people choose to eat a big mac then light up a menthol. As a smoker I wish that wasnt taxed either.

[Saffron]

I'm sorry but kids whine even if you NEVER give in to them. The times we go to McDonald's are when I take them there without them asking. I don't give in to my children's whining and they sure as hell aren't spoiled by their grandparents (who NEVER eat at McDonald's). They get in serious trouble and lose privileges for whining... guess what they still do it. They hear what OTHER kids get to do and they think they are abused, neglected and the unluckiest kids in the world. I refuse to even call McDonald's a "treat" to them or allow them to call it a "treat." When we go to McDonald's, it's because I have no time to cook because I've worked late and have soccer, Girl Scouts, softball or one of our other activities to get to. When I go, it is generally out of necessity and I don't like any other fast food place with a drive-thru any better so I let them be happy. I wish Chipotle had a drive thru on those busy days because they are just as happy to eat there WITHOUT the toy. I used to order the food without calling it a Happy Meal but it's actually more expensive that way so why not make them happy. They also are not banning all toys with Happy Meals... it's only on meals containing MORE than 485 calories which is a ridiculous amount of calories for a small child to eat anyway... it's mostly only going to effect "Mighty Kids" meals which are the double-cheeseburgers and 6 piece nuggets. People have fits about car seat laws too... if parents can't or won't take care of their children, it is the job of our government to protect children from their own parents.... just like the government can make parents get medical treatment for their kids whether it's against their religion or not. If parents are incompetent at making the right choice for their children, someone needs to. Children are not the personal property of their parents despite how some people treat them. They can not make their own decisions until they are 18 so the government has to guard THEIR right to be reared in a healthy safe manner.

[coffee achiever]

if parents can't or won't take care of their children, it is the job of our government to protect children from their own parents...

That is one seriously slippery fucking slope right there, Saffron. Government should absolutely intervene when children are being abused, not being provided with life-saving medical attention, or not being educated.

But to suggest that the government should intervene when children aren't being "fed properly"? According to whose standards? And what if the parent is choosing not to immunize their kids for personal reasons. Should the government intervene then?

I'm a less-is-more kinda gal when it comes to government intervention in personal affairs.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

I do not think anyone is questioning the role of advertising in this or even the unhealthy habit of a diet of fast food.

The question is of the government legislating a choice. Because some people take their whiny kid to McDonald's, MY kid should not have an occasional trip there?

They better outlaw ice cream. And candy. And a million other things. Many people irresponsibly feed that to their whiny kids, too. Because if there is no McDonald's, that behavior WILL continue with other "bad for you" treats... ads or no ads.

It's the parent's job. If they don't know better, teach 'em. Banning things will not solve anything. Even with smoking and alcohol ads, things did not change until education and attitudes changed. There are still ads for those products but they don't make me run out and buy them (most ads for anything don't drive my decision making process).

And don't forget to outlaw cake. Mmmm....

[Aslan]

Personally I think whiny kids should be outlawed

[coffee achiever]

Oh goodie. More nanny-state b.s. Oh, please, Mr. Big Government Man, come tell me how to live my life because other people keep making bad decisions.

Rather than outlawing fast food, junk food, sodas, and all the other crap that's causing the obesity epidemic, the government should tax the hell out of it and use the money to pay for public health care. That way, those who need it will contribute the most to it.

Parents need to be parents. My three-year-old doesn't know what McDonald's is. She calls it "the M" and asks for it when she needs to potty on road trips. She's never eaten there, and I don't plan to feed her there anytime soon. She has enough toys. And her dad makes better burgers.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Does anyone seriously believe that a lack of a toy, no ads, and even no kids-sized meals are going to stop whiny kids or stop parents from making bad food choices for their kids?

McDonald's diet is bad for everyone. Getting rid of them completely is the next step. Not only was this predicted by those worried about the smoking laws, it is coming true. And when they get done that, they will move on to the next thing.

I really feel sorry for my grand kids and beyond. I will die free. They will not even live free.

[Lizard]

I really feel sorry for my grand kids and beyond. I will die free. They will not even live free.

Damn, Dakota. I feel like I need to stand on top of a mountain waving a flag while moving music booms out around me.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Damn, Dakota. I feel like I need to stand on top of a mountain waving a flag while moving music booms out around me.

Bitch. I am serious.

[Lizard]

Bitch. I am serious.

So am I. Consider it a compliment to your knack for packing a lot into a few words.

Bitch.