Factors That Influence Food Habits And Culture - 947 Words

Factors that Influence Food Habits and Culture Food not only acts as a necessity of life, but it also provides a way for people to bond and display their culture. People’s food habits act as a way for them to identify themselves. Food habits refer to the reasons why people eat, their methods of eating, the form of food they eat, and the way they get, store, and get rid of food (Rodriguez, 2002). Several factors influence people’s food habits and culture. Some of these factors include a person’s budget, health, and religion. Other factors such as age, gender, and social and cultural backgrounds determine people’s food habits. People buy what they can afford. Some people have the desire to eat in a healthier way, but they are not able to do this because they cannot afford healthy food. Junk food tends to be more readily available and consequently cheaper to buy than healthy food. People with low incomes find it hard to eat at restaurants, and they find it more economical to make their own meals. Food ava ilability also determines people’s food habits. People tend to eat what they can find easily. Rare foods tend to be more expensive, and people avoid this. Foods in season are cheaper. This makes a person’s food habit seasonal and flexible, yet homogenous enough to define a person’s identity (Bellisle, 2012). A person’s health and lifestyle will determine their food habits. People with health problems requiring unique considerations of their diet will be more selective withShow MoreRelatedEvaluation Of Factors That Influence Food Habits And Culture1584 Words   |  7 PagesEvaluation of factors that influence food habits and culture Aya Harada San Francisco State University Abstract There are many reasons to why people eat what they choose to eat every day. These eating habits are formed naturally, allowing â€Å"food† to become a key element to separate one person from another. Many of these reasons are formed by daily habits, which could be influenced by a person’s environment, culture, education, economic standard, and/or race. These influences are what causes the habits to formRead MoreFactors That Influence Food Habits and Culture Essay741 Words   |  3 PagesFactors that influence food habits and culture How do you choose your food? This is a very simple question for most people,but we may get a hundred of different answers. Therefore,What factors actually influence our food habit and culture ? During the long history of human, food habits and culture are influenced by many factors. I want to discuss how food habits and culture influenced by geographical factors, religions factors,social factors and economic factors. First of all, climate is aRead MoreFood Culture Essay1310 Words   |  6 PagesFactors Influencing Food Habits and Culture Eating food is essential for all of us, it keep us alive and also gives us enjoyment at the same time. Food can be defined as any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue. (ilearn) In ancient time, when people feel hungry, they eat. However, as human history keep developing and evolving, we have a higher standard on choosing food that we like to eat nowadays. In this paper, we are going to evaluate factors thatRead MoreFood Habits And Its Effects On Food940 Words   |  4 PagesFood not only acts as a necessity of life, but it also provides a way for people to bond and display their culture. People’s food habits act as a way for them to identify themselves. Food habits refer to the reasons why people eat, their methods of eating, the form of food they eat, and the way they get, store, and get rid of food (Rodriguez, 2002). Several factors influence people’s food habits and culture. Some of these factors include a person’s budget, health, and religion. Other factors suchRead MoreCulture Is A Major Factor Of Obesity1555 Words   |  7 PagesCulture is a major factor of obesity. Many people generalize overweight and obese people as lazy and gluttonous. These people who generalize, like doctors and health nuts, ignore other factors that could cause a person to be heavy. They overlook the effect of food habits and how they can be passed down from generation to generation, much like a cultural tradition, and how respecting some of these traditions can be just as important as following their cultures values. Culture plays a greater roleRead MoreFood Choices Of College Life And Time Affect Eating Habits1188 Words   |  5 Pagesmotivations in food choices of college students to see how college life and time affect eating habits. Students often must balance busy lives and have limited income, so money and time often are critical when deciding what to eat. The main concepts of my research question have to do with what causes people to eat healthily or unhealthily. The point is to try to understand what influences people’s eating habits, primarily how social class and time influence eating habits. Healthy food is often muchRead MoreCauses, Effects And Solutions Of Overweight918 Words   |  4 Pagespsychological factors and culture effect. The adverse effects of overweight include causation of diseases and loss of viable generation. Therefore, the essay will show that the causes of overweight, its effects, and possible solutions to the disease. The main factor for overweight children is psychological factors. Laziness is a main reason in psychological factors. Most of American children eat lunch at school and they choose the fast food in the school instead of preparing food. Children are tooRead MoreSociocultural And Family Influences On Eating Disorders1372 Words   |  6 Pagesthat lead to the development of eating disorders. Neurology is a factor as disturbances to neurotransmitters and serotonin can affect brain activities that make an individual more susceptible to develop disordered behaviors associated with eating disorders. Genetics are also an important factor to eating disorders as they are inheritable and recessive in future generations. Personal, predisposed characteristics are another influence in eating disorders. Those who have self-esteem deficits, easilyRead MoreDoes A Parent s Education Level Affect Their Nutritional Habits?1312 Words   |  6 PagesRough Draft Does a Parent’s Education Level Affect Their Offsprings Nutritional Habits? Thesis If parents had a high education level then their children will be able to make good dietary decisions and live a healthier life Rationale The study will help society because it can correlate the relationship between a parent s educational level and the food habits of their offspring. This can bridge the gap between what causes certain families to be properly nourished and what causes other families toRead MoreThe Effects Of Television Advertising On Food Choices Essay1434 Words   |  6 Pagesa powerful, subconscious effect on food choices for both adults and children. Exposure to fast food ads seems to promote consumption of these foods. Clinical trials have been done looking at the effect of advertising and food choices. A number of studies have found that TV commercials for specific foods lead to an increase in the consumption of these foods before and after airing the commercials, Every day you are bombarded with literally lots of different food choices. Walk down your street, watch

Passing And Repealment Of The Fourteenth Amendment

Answering how the Prohibition failed is a lofty question with many answers and components of answers. Even daily life during the Prohibition had was shaped by illegal alcohol making and trading. You would regularly hear of people being gunned down in the street due to a bad deal or a falling out. The combination of crime and disobedience at such a high rate spelled for the inevitable repeal of Amendment 18, but what were some of the specific factors? This paper will try to examine what led to the passing and repealment of The 18th Amendment + The Volstead Act. In order to understand the problem, we have to first know what caused it. That would be the 18th Amendment and the Volstead Act. The 18th Amendment prohibited the†¦show more content†¦This was a controversial move for the Congress to make, it certainly did not go off without consequences. The Volstead Act, even as concrete as its rules seem, had many loopholes that the American people could abuse. One of the largest and most obvious loopholes was that medicinal alcohol could still be prescribed by physicians. Many people would feign sickness in order to obtain whisky legally and reliably. This caused the sale of medical alcohol to insanely spike in sales, but even with the obvious implications these stats held, the government did not remove whisky as a prescribed medicine. Many farmers would also profit off of alcohol made of grapes and other juices. Since the government couldn’t ban fruit juices, they would mix those fruits with a certain dry fruit used to create alcohol. Supplies in which you could easily brew your own alcohol could also be found in common groceries. People even went as far as to joining the congregation to obtain sacramental wine. If one wanted to enjoy their drinking with others, they could just enter one of the many â€Å"Speakeasies,† popping up underground. These secret bars had secret entrances, which could only be accessed with a spoken password. It was said that ‘with every legitimate bar closed, six speakeasies would take it’s place.’ While some made the use of legal loopholes to get their alcohol fix, many turned to crime and subterfuge. People who didn’t want to directly get their hands dirty called upon the

Consumer Behavior Disconfirmation of Expectations

Question: Describe about the Consumer Behavior for Disconfirmation of Expectations. Answer: Expectation Disconfirmation Theory: Oliver conceptualized the theory of disconfirmation of expectations in 1980. The background of the study was made on the experience of satisfaction where the standard measure of study has been that satisfaction engages relationship of previous expectations with the pragmatic performance (Wang Fu, 2013). This theory states that a consumers total satisfaction results from an evaluation of the expectation with the performance outcome. Thus, the two important variables of this theory are expectation and the performance outcome which persuades the verdict of the satisfaction measure. The satisfaction level of consumers is taken in as one of the major factors to foresee the purchase propensity of customer. Expectation disconfirmation theory can assist a firm in increasing satisfaction through increased apparent performance of product or the decrease in expectation. Fig.1: First Expectation Disconfirmation Theory Expectations can be defined as the anticipations of consumers about the products and services performance. The EDT model has the capability of defining multiple manners of the consumers in the process of purchase. New customers who do not have any first-hand experience about the quality of products and performance rely on the feedbacks they obtain from the mass media and other customers. Perceived performance analyzes the experience of consumers after using certain products or services that can be superior or inferior to the expectation of the consumers. Consumers who have the relevant experience along with the ones, who do not, will purchase and experience a product for a certain period of time to recognize the definite quality of the services or products presented by the business (Selnes, 2013). Disconfirmation can be positive disconfirmation, negative disconfirmation and simple disconfirmation. Positive disconfirmation occurs when a perceived performance of a particular product or service exceeds the satisfaction level of consumers whereas when it does not match the expectation it leads to customers dissatisfaction. Lastly, when there is no difference between expectation of consumers and the real performance of a particular product or service, simple confirmation takes place. Three determinants of consumer of running shoes Three attributes of the consumer who is looking to purchase a running shoe are comfort, durability and style. Comfort: A comfortable running shoe is not always easy to find, but the demand for it has gone up over the years. Running shoes which are traditional in nature offers extra cushioning where landing can produce a force of 1.5 to 3 times the body weight. Running shoes needs to present easy flexing at the ball of the foot with sufficient stability. Certain things that consumers will take into consideration about comfortability: -Intended Use: An important factor is in which surface the consumer of the running shoe would make his regular run, a forest trail or a purpose-built track. Each and every surface calls for a different kind of running shoes. -Length of the Shoe: The consumer needs to keep an open mind on the size of the shoe and one thing which he should remember is that his foot needs more space while running. It so happens that the further one runs the foot will develop naturally. A little bit of extra room is advisable. -Width of the Shoe: Width of the shoe is equally important as the length of the same. A perfect proportion of human body is difficult to find where one can often have narrower or wider feet than normal. -Weight: It takes into account two things; The weight of the runner- If the consumer is a big built person then he probably requires a shoe that has a lot of support The weight of the shoe: A lighter shoe is again a suggestion as generally the consumer will be wearing it for many kilometers. Durability: Durable soles are a necessary factor to look for in running shoes. A good quality and durable sole will help the runner use that particular running shoe for at least 300 to 500 miles before they start changing their performance. However, a slightly heavier runner will notice the changes sooner. The shoes which are lighter in nature are often less durable than their heavier equivalent. Moreover the running shoes should only be used for running and not for any other purpose. Style: One should always look good while running and the first that people notices in anyone is the shoe he wears. There are a lot of running shoe brands in the market ranging from Nike to Adidas. It is more like what suits the consumers and what soothes his eye in the name of the fashion and style. Design of a running shoe matters in bringing in the equation of comfort for the consumer. Determining the consumers importance weights for each attribute: Different consumers would weigh differently for the three attributes mentioned above. Consumers perception of that particular product and his main purpose or idea behind using such a product determines the weighted of the attributes related to the product. This particular consumer is serious about his running shoes which he feels would play a big part in making him run for longer hours to keep him fit and on track for a healthy body. For him, Comfort will be equal to 55% as if he is not comfortable with his running shoes he might not feel motivated to continue with his running on a regular basis. He always has the option of changing it or replacing it with a new pair but then running shoes of good quality are costly. Comfortability with his running shoes will keep his feet intact and in shape without causing any damage. Moreover, running shoes are generally made to provide maximum shock assimilation which may help preventing tendinitis, heel pain and stress fractures. The consumer has opt for a weighted of 35% on the durability factor. As stated earlier these shoes come at a costly price and no consumer would want to change it after a few span months. Durability is a factor that is directly associated with this products. The first question that generally a consumer would ask to a retailer about a shoe is that whether a particular shoe is durable or not. Worn out shoes are never good to easy and they would not serve any purpose of the runner. He was not to keen on the style factor, but agreed to give it a 10% weight. For him style does not play a part as important as the other two determinants. Serving the purpose is more important factor for him than the product being classy and stylish. On a scale of 1 to 7, consumers expectation on how the brand would perform on each attributes On asking the consumer about what his prior expectations have been regarding the purchase of a Nike running shoe, the consumer agreed to the fact that he had certain prior conceptions and expectations about the brand. Comfort is a factor that the consumer has expected the brand to offer through its shoes like Nike Zoom Structure and Nike LunarGlide which has a soft cushioning with a good stability factor along with its elegant looks. Going by the product review, the consumer expected the brand to play good, thus giving it a high rate of 6. Price is a factor, but not more than its durability which needs to be considered. Branded products always come with a tag of durability, to have a good and loyal customer base. Longevity of a product determines the customer base of that organization. A certain slip in quality can be devastating for a brand. The consumer uses other normal Nike shoes and he has been quite happy with the use of those shoes. He believes in the brand and in its durability factor. The consumer from his prior experience has given 5 out of 7 to the brand. Nike is a brand that is famous for comfort and style. As style is the last thing that the consumer would focus on while buying a running shoe he only provided 2 out of 7 on that factor. Style is required for those who are style conscious but this man does not seem to be one. On a scale of 1 to 7, the consumer rates his actual perceptions on the performance of the shoe on each attributes The consumer is satisfied with the way the shoe is performing for him. He states that the comfort factor has been at the highest level. He bought the Nike LunarGlide and states its cushioning part is well placed to stop any kind of injury to the feet if the feet does not land properly at times. His feet do not feel any kind of stress even after running for a longer period of time. He says his prior expectation has matched with the performance outcome of the shoe. He rates it 6 out of 7. On the durability front too the consumer is quite satisfied. It has hold up well on a few occasions when the consumer decided to try it out on trekking. A few torn out here and there but he is ready to give it a 4. Style never mattered for him, but few people have been quite impressive with look of the LunarGlide shoe. He likes the style now more than he thought of before buying it. He gave it a 2 before buying it, after hearing peoples views and opinions about the style factor he was ready to increase it by one and give it a 3. S= w (p-e), where S is satisfaction level Comfort; Perceived = 6, Expected = 6 S= .55(6-6) = 0; as it is 0, it signifies that the customer was satisfied with the comfort factor Durability; Perceived = 4, Expected = 5 S= .35(4-5) = (.35) which is below 0 signifying that the consumer was not overly satisfied with the durability factor. Style; Perceived = 3, Expected = 2 S= .10 (3-2) = .10 which is more than 0 signifying that he was impressed with its style factor. Sum of all Perceptions: (Comfort+ Durability+ Style) = (6+4+3) = 13 Sum of all expectations: (Comfort+ Durability+ Style) = (6+5+2) = 13 Here, overall, it can be seen that the sum of all perceptions minus expectations is (13-13) 0 which indicate that the consumer is absolutely satisfied with the product. It can thus be stated the consumer was satisfied with the purchase of that particular brand and it is serving the purpose for which it was bought by the consumer. Reference: Selnes, F. (2013). An examination of the effect of product performance on brand reputation, satisfaction and loyalty.Journal of Product Brand Management. Wang, S. Y., Fu, T. W. (2013, May). Exploring the Effective of Unexpectedness: An Extension of Expectation-Disconfirmation Theory. In2013 Fifth International Conference on Service Science and Innovation.

Negative Impact of Advertising to Children Essay Example

Negative Impact of Advertising to Children Essay The Negative Impact of Advertising to Children As citizens in the modern world, we are used to being bombarded with over 3,000 advertisements over the course of our day (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2006). Advertisements are so common that we often do not realize we are viewing them. Originally, an advertisement was a way to reach the world. In the early days of television, the programming had to be entertaining for many demographics, because there were only a few channels that targeted a mass audience. During this time, a focus was not placed on audience segmentation, because there were not enough media channels to segment an audience. Today, audiences are segmented through all forms of media. Through this increased segmentation, advertisers are able to more successfully reach individual demographics than ever before. Children have become an especially lucrative market, but before this practice continues, many changes and regulation must occur. In 2006, there were 73. 7 million children under the age of 18 in the United States. The child population has increased over 50% since 1950 (U. S. Census Bureau, 2007). They make up over $28 billion of direct spending and influence $250 billion dollars of family spending. In 2004, over the course of one year, advertisers spent $12 billion to target children (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2001, p. 423). Children have been a target for advertisers since there was a channel to reach them, but the effects are harmful. As a result of the lucrative market, advertisers are constantly seeking new ways to target younger and younger children to establish a brand name preference, at the earliest age possible. Advertising is a pervasive influence on children. They are being exposed to advertising on the internet, in schools, magazines, television and outdoors. We will write a custom essay sample on Negative Impact of Advertising to Children specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Negative Impact of Advertising to Children specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Negative Impact of Advertising to Children specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer When advertising is so ubiquitous, it is impossible to assume that a child is not influenced. For this very reason, several European countries have prohibited or restricted advertising to children, â€Å"in the UK, restrictions exist on ads that might result in harm to children physically, mentally or morally and on ads employing methods that take advantage of the natural credulity and sense of loyalty of children† (Peace Pledge Union, 1997). However, advertising to children is perfectly legal in the United States and has very limited restriction. Although advertising to children creates business for any, it is harmful and its long term effect should be considered. Greater restrictions must be placed on the age of children that advertisements target and the content that they are sold, because young children lack the ability to cognitively process an advertisement, many advertisers are not concerned about the effect their product or message has on a child and children are often accidentally or purposefully influenced by alcohol and tobacco advertisements. To fully understand the negative effects on advertising to children, the history must first be reviewed. Before there was a direct channel to reach children, youth advertisements were directed at the parents, â€Å"Get your boy a gun. He will develop steady nerves, keener eyesight, health and boyish happiness. † Comic books were one of the first direct channels to target children. Comic books often used deceiving advertisements that displayed the product in an unrealistic form such as, â€Å"The world’s most terrifying rubber snake. † Radio was also a huge medium to reach children. In February of 1922, ATT began selling toll broadcasting, which today is called sponsorships. Through sponsorships, advertisers would buy an hour or half hour program and use that time to promote their product. A radio club was beneficial to both the advertisers and the radio networks because a child would listen to the radio program and buy a specific number of products to join the club (Children and Advertising, 2010). With the creation of television, advertisers built on the practice perfected by radio of weaving sponsorships into the programming. In 1955, Mattel was one of the first companies to advertise to children on television. Mattel bought a year worth of sponsorships on the Mickey Mouse Show. The sponsorships often included an advertorial and plugs from the programs characters. Today, advertising is everywhere and directed at nearly everyone (Table and Home, 2004). A 1999 study found that children, on average, spend three hours per day watching television and six hours and thirty-two minutes per day in front of a screen. As this study was presented over ten years ago and technology has rapidly advanced, these numbers have undoubtedly grown. At this rate, by the time a person reaches seventy years old, they will have spent 7 to 10 years just watching television (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2010). Advertisers reach children through all of the media they access and just about everywhere outside of that media as well. A young child is not mentally equipped to understand point of view and persuasion like a fully developed adult, yet many advertisers target very young children without regard for this scientific fact. To understand at what age children are able to comprehend various stimuli, Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development will be reviewed. From birth to age 2, during the sensorimotor stage, a child demonstrates intelligence through motor activity. Development begins mainly though interactions and experiences. A child recognizes that he or she is the agent of action and understands object permanence (an understanding that an object will not disappear once it is out of sight). During this stage, Children utilize skills and abilities they were born with, such as looking, sucking, grasping, and listening. During the pre-operational stage (age 2-7), thinking is done in a non-logical egocentric manner, memory and imagination are developed, language use matures and intelligence is demonstrated through the use of symbols. During the concrete operational stage (age 7-11), a child begins to diminish egocentric thought and a greater focus is placed on the behavior of others. In this stage, operational thinking develops, point of view can be taken into account and the seven types of conservation are developed (mass, number, length, liquid, mass, weight, area and volume). During the formal operational stage (age 11-adulthood), abstract concepts are developed and a concern is placed on the hypothetical, the future, and ideological problems (Duveen, Perret-Clemont, Psaltis, 2009, p. 292). The way these cognitive effects relate to advertising is based on the level of attention given to advertisements, an understanding of the advertiser’s point of view, interpretation and memory of the advertisement, and the ability to understand advertisings persuasive intent. Through Piaget’s four stages, â€Å"it has been argued that an approximate age of nine or ten is crucial in explaining children’s understanding of advertising intent† (Lawlor, 2009, p. 23). However, many advertisers target children below the ages of nine or ten without consideration for their understanding or the effects that they impose. At an early age, it is unclear if a child can distinguish between an advertisement and the programming. It is argued that around the age of five, children can use a number of cues to determine the difference such as, humor, music, an understanding of program length versus commercial length and a comprehension of genre. The results of Rubin’s 1974 study of two seven year olds and Kunkel and Robert’s 1991 study of children under the age of five, suggested that young kids were unable to make the distinction between programming and advertisements. The fact that many children cannot make a distinction between an advertisement and a program shows that they are clearly not developed enough to understand the content and reason for an advertisement. Conversely, a 1981 study of four and five year olds showed that the children were able to tell the difference, but unable to explain why (Kapoor, 2005, p. 31). Even though a group of children were able to make a distinction, the fact that they could not explain why the programming and advertising were different makes it clear that they are not cognitively able to process the advertisement. Therefore, children under the age of the age of ten, who can’t take into account point of view and persuasion, should not be advertised to under any circumstance; unless that advertisement is created by a non-profit organization to impose positive societal values. Restrictions should be placed on only targeting after the age of ten years old, when advertisements and their intention can be fully comprehended. When a company is not concerned about the effect that their product or message has on children, many issues arise. One of the biggest problems is that many products targeting children promote un-nutritious â€Å"junk food†. Not only is it a problem that the food is generally unhealthy, but that a growing child needs to eat well-balanced, nutritional meals. A study of the effect of nutrition on brain development of young children found that, â€Å"nutrition can directly modify gene structure and mediate the expression of genetic factors by providing the specific molecules that enable genes to exert their potential or targeted effects on brain growth and development† (Reznick, Rosales, Zeisel, 2009, p. 91). A study by Brown and Pollitt found that poor nutrition causes a delay in intellectual development by causing brain damage, enhancing the risk of illness, inducing lethargy, and delayed physical growth. Through eating foods with poor nutrition, an immune system is broken down and can cause illness, which delays the development of motor skills. Children learn from their external envi ronment and if junk food causes lethargy and delayed physical growth, than a limitation on new knowledge can occur (Reznick, Rosales, Zeisel, 2009, p. 93). When a generation of children grows up eating junk food, they will be severely limited; physically and mentally. This could impact the rest of a child’s life because children given proper nutritional meals will have an advantage. Self-regulated restrictions or federal legislation should be placed on foods sold to children, based on their nutritional content. Childhood obesity has more than tripled in 30 years. In America, 16-33 percent of children are obese (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008). Advertising healthy foods has been shown to increase wholesome eating in children between the ages of 3 and 6, but health food advertisements make up less than 3 percent of food advertising. Recently it was found that 20 percent of fast food restaurants mention a toy in their commercials, which clearly indicates that children are their targets (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2008). The Center for Science and Public Interest, a public health watchdog group, recently accused McDonalds of using happy meals to exploit children to eat their food, causing obesity, at key stages in a child’s development. McDonalds defended their products, by stating that they offer apples and milk, as healthy alternatives to French fries. However, these options are only given upon request and are still paired with chicken nuggets or a burger. McDonald’s chicken nuggets contain only 44 percent chicken and are made up mostly of salt, corn and preservatives. Overall, there are 38 ingredients in the chicken nugget. Due to extreme processing, modified cornstarch is added to hold the nuggets together, emulsifiers are added so that the fats and moisture do not separate and chicken broth is added to give it a flavor (Navreet, 2007). Home cooked chicken, assuming that it is organic, contains only one ingredient; chicken. These over processed chicken nuggets are a product that is clearly unsafe for anyone to eat; not to mention a young child. McDonalds uses licensed character promotion, happy meals and Ronald McDonald to target children and influence them into eating their food. Unfortunately, the problem does not only lie within McDonalds, there are many other fast food companies targeting children through similar methods. Through the sale of over processed foods that lead to obesity, fast food orporations are clearly not concerned about the long term effects of their products. Not supplying a child with the knowledge that a great deal of this food is unhealthy and through advertising, persuading the cognitively underdeveloped to eat this low quality food, is poisoning America’s youth. Fast food restaurants are not the only group targeting children and encouraging them to eat foods with little to no nutrit ional value. Vending machines in schools are becoming another problem for children. This is contributing to the obesity epidemic that is not only plaguing the children, but adults as well. Soft drink companies have signed exclusive agreements with over 200 school districts nationwide. These agreements give the soft drink companies the power to determine the placement and number of vending machines throughout the schools. Pizza Hut and Taco Bell have nearly 7500 chains in school cafeterias throughout America. The benefit from vending machines and licensed restaurants is the funding that the schools receive. A contract with a soft drink company can net a school $30-$35 per student. This adds up to around $100,000 to $300,000 for a district (Chaika, 2006). Although the school is able to generate more funding to support the students, they are hurting them by providing snacks that are high in fat. A school is supposed to educate students and prepare them for the future. If a child disrupts a class, he is sent to a detention, which is done to place a negative emphasis on their behavior. By providing vending machines and unhealthy foods in an institution that is supposed to influence positive behavior, schools are sending a message that regularly eating these snacks is acceptable. Corporations advertise these products to children and know that the schools are reliant on the funding and will carry them. Soft drink and snack companies need to focus on more nutritious foods to advertise to children and re-evaluate the products that are placed in their vending machines. Children are highly influenced by licensed characters. A recent study by Yale University tested children between the ages of four and six years old. In the study, the children tasted 3 pairs of identical foods. These foods were presented in packages, where some contained a popular cartoon character and some were a generic brand. The children were asked if the foods tasted the same or if there were specific foods that tasted better. The study found that children were more likely to choose a package with a cartoon character over those without (Yale Office of Public Affairs and Communication, 2010). In 2001, Coca-Cola paid $150 million for the global marketing rights to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Asquith, 2009, p. 42). Many corporations recognize the influence of licensed characters and cartoons on children and take full advantage by unfairly using them to sway the child’s opinion of an advertisement. In 1991, The Journal of American Medical Association published a study of five and six year old children to determine what character was most recognized between Mickey Mouse, Fred Flintstone and Joe Camel. The majority of children recognized Joe Camel over both cartoon characters (Reichert, 2008, p. 75). After this study, the American Medical Association requested that R. J. Reynolds stop the campaign, which R. J. Reynolds refused. In that same year, Janet Mangini, a San Francisco-based attorney, filed a lawsuit against R. J. Reynolds on the grounds that children were being targeted. As a result of the campaign, the number of teenage smokers rose from 0. 5 percent in 1988, the year Joe Camel was launched, to 25 to 33 percent in 1992. Mangini alleged that in 1992, teenage smokers accounted for $476 million of Camel’s sales, compared to $6 million in 1988. During the trial, internal documents were released that demonstrated R. J. Reynolds interest in targeting children as future smokers, â€Å"As this 14-24 age group matures, they will account for a key share of the total cigarette volume for at least the next 25 years. † Throughout the life of the Joe Camel campaign, R. J. Reynolds denied that Joe targeted children, stating that Joe Camel only targets 25-49 year old males and current Marlboro smokers. In 1997, R. J. Reynolds settled out of court and voluntarily ended the Joe Camel campaign (Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, 1994). Through the campaign and trial, it is made clear that R. J. Reynolds was purposefully and unfairly targeting underage children to become smokers. In the infancy of this campaign, surveys should have been completed by R. J. Reynolds to determine the age group that Joe Camel is most popular. Alcohol manufacturers spend $5. billion a year on advertising and promotion. America’s youth views more than 2000 beer and wine commercials per year, with most advertising concentrated in sports programming (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2006). Children make decisions about their view on alcohol during their grade school years. Exposure to alcohol commercials tends to shape adolescents attitudes toward alcohol, their intentions to drink and underage drinking behavior. Alcohol advertisements appeal to youth through non-product related elements such as, a character, the use of humor and the use of popular music (Donovan, Fiedler, Ouschan, 2009, p. 1158). A 1996 survey found that children between nine and eleven were more familiar with the Budweiser frogs than Tony the Tiger or the Power Rangers (The Marin institute, 2002). Alcohol advertisements influence young people by associating the drinks with attractive symbols, role models and positive expectations. Through this association, children are made more comfortable with consuming alcohol by the positive consequences that the advertisements display. The evidence that cartoon characters influence children is clear. The tobacco and alcohol businesses should refrain from using cartoon figures because they unfairly target children. As a result of alcohol and tobacco companies purposefully or accidentally targeting children, a review board should be developed that evaluates the effects of these campaigns on children. Growing awareness of the negative impact of advertising on children has called for more strict advertising practices. The food and beverage industries have taken voluntary steps in the right direction by limiting school vending machine products to low-fat snacks and diet beverages, but there may be a need for more strict government regulation. Currently there are two legislations that limit advertising to children. The Children’s Television Act of 1990 limits ads to 10. 5 minutes per hour on the weekends and 12 minutes per hour on the weekdays. The act also requires that advertising content is made separate from the television program. The second legislation is the Children’s Privacy Protection Act, which requires advertisers to get parental permission and disclose how the information will be used before collecting children’s information over the internet. Another form of regulation is done by the Children’s Advertising Revue Board, which monitors advertising directed at children under the age of twelve, for unfair and deceptive content. If an advertiser does not comply with the CARU guidelines, they are referred to the FTC (Reichert, 2008, p. 95). If more government regulation was not an option, through an incentive, the FTC could make voluntary initiatives by industries selling to children more meaningful. Advertisers target children of all ages through many forms of media. Targeting children under the age of ten, where they are not cognitively able to process an advertisement, is essentially the same as putting an adult into a wrestling ring with a young child and allowing them to fend for themselves. Advertisers should not sell to children under the age of ten, unless those ads are for a non-profit organization such as, an anti-smoking campaign. Restrictions should be placed on the types of products children are sold and more incentives should be in place for fruit and vegetable advertisements. Alcohol and tobacco companies should never target children and surveys on the target market of their campaigns should be required to ensure that children are not accidentally targeted. However, even with greater restrictions and more strict guidelines, there is no way to determine the exact age group an advertisement is targeting and there will almost always be a way for a company to slip through the cracks. Ultimately, children’s greatest defense against advertising will be from their parents. Parents should be concerned that advertisers are targeting and manipulating their children into wanting their products. More regulation can be put in place, but parents educating their children on proper nutritional meals, the harmful effects of alcohol and tobacco and explaining the persuasive intent of advertising will be the most effective method.