Obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally over the past few years, with more than a billion teenagers and children being overweight. The major contributor to this chronic disease is the media (Keller 14). The media world, which children, youth, and a number of adults enjoy so much, by way of movies, video games, videos, and the internet have profound influence on their health. While the media gives people a chance to learn more and be entertained, some of the messages and images aired have been linked to socially inappropriate behavior and health concerns.
The health concerns include poor nutrition, obesity, unhealthy body image, and risky sexual behaviors, which can lead to serious health conditions. In this research, some areas of study had irrefutable evidence while others required common sense, which indicated a strong correlation and required more research. Teenagers and children are big media consumers. More than 8 in 10 watch movies and listen to music every day, about 65% of them reported that they play video games more than twice a week and 99% of them use internet and are online for at least 2 hours every day (Keller 21). This paper explores the various ways in which the media influences obesity among teenagers and gives some remedies for this global epidemic.
Research suggests that food and beverage products placement in movies and music videos is a potent source of advertising. Food and beverage advertisements are frequently aired during most television programming and most of these foods and beverages are of poor quality (Koplan 11). At a time when most teenagers are not getting half of the daily recommended nutrients, product placements through the media provide alternative means of energy-dense promotion through unhealthy poor foods, which lack essential nutrients. Majority of the brands advertised through placements are energy-sense, nutrient-poor foods and sugar sweetened beverages, especially sodas, which have the largest proportion of all the products placements. A great number of these product placements for low quality foods and beverages from companies such as Coca-cola, PepsiCo Nestle USA and McDonald’s were found in movies targeted for children and teenagers (Koplan 41).
Studies also show that children who have TVs in their bedrooms are likely to become more overweight than children who do not. As teenager’s interest in the media increases, the prevalence of overweight teenagers also increases (Connor 57). A high level of TV use is significantly associated with a child’s overweight. Research has proved that having a TV in the bedroom is a major predictor of child becoming overweight. Presence of a TV set in a child’s room accelerates the impact of TV watching on the child’s weight status. Teenagers with TV set in their rooms spend more time watching, are less active, they eat fewer family meals, eat fewer vegetables and consume more sweetened beverages than teenagers without TV sets in their bedrooms consume (Connor 57).
Teenage is a time during children’s development when they become susceptible to outside influence and during which they start gaining independence in their food choices. There are factors that influence lifelong choices and habits around food, which makes them dependant on certain unhealthy foods (Connor 63). Parents should hence limit screen-time to less than 2hrs per day. That includes the internet and video games. They should also make an effort of watching television with their children in order for them to know what their children are being exposed to. Understanding the early causes of weight gain will help combat teenage and adult obesity. Several determinants of teenage obesity have been identified and parents have an important role in shaping their children’s food habits. A few studied have linked adult and teenage eating habits to parenting and childhood heating habits. Dietary intake and inactivity have been the major causes of obesity among teenagers and technological convenience together with the media have facilitated this. TV watching might contribute to obesity in other of ways, aside from those mentioned above. Increased sedentary activity and displacement of more physical pursuits, increased snacking behavior while watching and through interference with the normal sleeping patterns (Connor 57)..
Teenagers spend more time with the media than other activities, apart from sleeping. For most teenagers today, the screen-time increases as the physical activities are dramatically reduced leading to a more sedentary lifestyle, where pursuits that are more active are displaced. Teenagers who use too much media have a more sedentary life in general (Strasburger, Victor, &Barbara 12). Increasing physical activities and decreasing media time has greatly improved nutritional practices, hence preventing obesity. The media is also known for affecting teenager’s sleeping patterns. Research shows that those who spend more time watching TV have difficulties finding sleep. Later bedtimes and less sleep have been associated with obesity. Lack of enough sleep leads to increased snacking and increased consumption of less healthy foods in order to maintain energy. Sleep deprivation causes fatigue and hence a more sedentary behavior. Studies suggest that teenagers who do not get enough sleep have metabolic changes as well. Stress also plays a big role in children and teenager’s weight gain. A recent research found out that more heavier TV use produces greater psychological stress to teenagers (Strasburger, Victor, &Barbara 23).
Works Cited
Boero, Natalie. Killer fat media, medicine, and morals in the American “obesity epidemic”. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press, 2012. Print.
Connor, Frances. Obesity and the media. New York, NY: Rosen Pub., 2009. Print.
Keller, Kathleen. Encyclopedia of obesity. Los Angeles: Sage Publications, 2008. Print.
Koplan, Jeffrey, Catharyn T. Liverman, and Vivica I. Kraak. Preventing childhood obesity health in the balance. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press, 2005. Print
Strasburger, Victor C., and Barbara J. Wilson. Children, adolescents, and the media. Thousand Oaks Calif.: Sage Publications, 2002. Print.
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