Unhealthy Toys For Toddlers Might Contribute To Destructive Habits Later In Their Lifetime
I went looking for new toys for my 2 year old granddaughters the other day and was totally dumbfounded by the pick of unhealthy toddler toys readily available for our children. I was so appalled by the vast selection of unhealthy baby toys I felt I needed to vent here, both for myself and for those of you who want to leave notes at the end of the column.
It's bad enough that we adults are bombarded on a regular basis with sneaky advertising strategies meant to brainwash and instigate hyper-consumerist tendencies, but so many of the ploys intended to hook toddlers through their toys is just plain corrupt! We as adults can at least recognize the rouse. We may still succumb, but at least we have the decision making skills and (for the most part) the intelligence to decipher when we are being catered to for our betterment or our impediment. Our infants plainly don't have that skill; which is why it is up to us to cut out the unhealthy toddler toys.
One glaring example was the McDonald's McKids toy line. Inside the french fry and burger casings, the backpack, and the kitchen setup were several dozen mini milkshakes, burgers, fries, and cookies. I cannot condemn the McDonald's corporation for trying to make a profit and let's be factual, they wouldn't sell these toys if someone didn't buy them; but we have to comprehend that this is how our kids recognize the logo and associate the golden arches with enjoyment as a juvenile. This variety of brand recognition marketing will keep the obesity rate at a steady incline until we as role models take matters into our own hands and start saying no to unhealthy child's toys.
I also saw a donut shop toy set...yup, donuts. Let's face it, any child who knows custard filled donuts and iced mocha prior to seeing the inside of the store is destined for cavities and diabetes... and that's the best case scenario.
Like I said, I shouldn't blame these billion dollar corporations for doing what they do first. We already know what they're all about. We know that for the most part they are cold, methodical, profit machines that will do whatever is necessary to ensure their fiscal well-being. Establishing unhealthy habits in our children only helps their future bottom line.
It is up to us to educate our children so that these marketing firms that are successfully initiating brand recognition at such an early age do not continue on to feed the unhealthy baby habits that feed into the childhood obesity epidemic through unhealthy toys for our children and babies. They will continue to fabricate and market these toys to our little ones, but we need to remember that the strength is always in our hands to say NO!
We can stop purchasing these unhealthy toys for our babies and help our children form healthful habits; or we can continue down the same path. Let our children be influenced by people who don't care about them or their well-being. Allow them to be yet another unhealthy statistics in a growing unhealthy society. Or we can do what is correct instead of what is easy. We can value our kids by valuing what we buy for them. We can keep our honor by giving our kids a fighting chance against the diseases and dysfunction both instigated and ignored by the fast food industry. Either way, it all starts by what we choose to surround our kids with.
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