WASHINGTON (AP) — Michelle Obama
used the power of her bully pulpit Wednesday to push food companies and
television broadcasters to do more to promote healthier foods to
children — and to do it faster.
Research shows food marketing is a leading cause of childhood obesity
because the ads and promotions lead impressionable kids to then pester
their parents to eat what they saw on TV, consumer advocates say.
The
first lady cited a "cultural shift" taking place in America's eating
habits, and highlighted as examples salad bars that are now in many
school lunchrooms and kids' restaurant menus that offer such items as
broccoli and whole-wheat pasta.But while she said there has been progress, including slight reductions in childhood obesity rates in a few states and cities, Mrs. Obama noted that "we clearly have much more work to do" when 1 in 3 kids in the U.S. is on track to develop diabetes.
"I'm here today with
one simple request and that is to do even more and move even faster to
market responsibly to our kids," the first lady said as she opened the
first White House
summit on the issue. Dozens of representatives from the food and media
industries, advocacy and parent groups, government agencies, research
institutions and others attended.
The goal, she said, is to "empower parents instead of undermining them" as they try to make the best choices for their families.
A 2006 report by the influential Institute of Medicine concluded that food and beverage marketing to children "represents, at best, a missed opportunity, and, at worst, a direct threat to the health of the next generation."
At the summit, which went into closed session after Mrs. Obama's public remarks, the first lady lauded the Walt Disney Co.
for banning junk-food ads from its media channels, websites and theme
parks. She also praised the Birds Eye frozen food company for using
characters from the Nickelodeon comedy "iCarly" in promotions
encouraging kids to eat their veggies.
She said companies can promote and sell healthy foods to kids and stay competitive and profitable at the same time.
"The
fact is that marketing nutritious foods to our kids isn't just good for
our kids' health, it can also be good for companies' bottom lines,"
said Mrs. Obama, who leads a White House initiative that is aimed at reducing childhood obesity.
She
asked food companies to do more marketing of products with "real
nutritional value," saying that limiting the promotion of unhealthy
foods alone isn't enough. She asked media companies to curb the amount
of advertising for unhealthy foods in their programming and to use
licensed characters popular with kids to promote healthier food.
Wednesday's summit could pick up where Congress and the administration left off a few years ago. Back then, the Obama administration gave up trying to get the food industry
to agree to voluntary marketing guidelines that four federal agencies
and departments were developing under the direction of Congress.
Industry
objected to preliminary guidelines released in 2011, saying they were
overly broad. Companies also said they feared retaliation by the
government if they refused to go along with the voluntary guidelines.
The Federal Trade Commission backed away from some of the guidelines and never released an updated version.
Mrs.
Obama joked Wednesday that some companies might think they can wait it
out and go back to business as usual after she leaves the White House.
She said childhood obesity will be a problem for years.
"I didn't create this issue and it's not going to go away three and a half years from now when I'm no longer first lady," Mrs. Obama said.
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