(Not) Eating Well – Learning from 5th Graders

August 24, 2010

Back-to-school season is again upon us. Exhaustive school-supplies lists in hand, parents are undoubtedly worrying about how to frugally prepare for their children’s return to academia. Children, meanwhile, are replacing their carefree, reckless abandon of summer with dread and apprehension. Unfortunately, neither group is thinking about what back-to-school means for children’s waistlines.

As a part of an ongoing project, I recently had the opportunity to listen to groups of middle-school students talk about their perspective on health, exercise, and nutrition. I expected much of what they said. School cafeteria food, for example, is still not winning any taste-tests—and of course it remains unhealthy. French fries, pizza, corn dogs and burgers are the primary lunch players. (Veggies occasionally make a watery, tasteless appearance.) I did not, however, expect the children to clamor for fresh vegetables to be included in their lunch program.

That sentiment was the first of many paradoxes presented during the sessions. Like most adults, these children understand the importance of living a healthy lifestyle. They knew the right answers and wielded terms from the health-conscious vernacular such as “carbs,” “trans-fats,” and “organic.” Without any urging, they noted that individuals should exercise roughly an hour three to four times a week and eat healthy foods. Yet, also like most adults, the majority of these children are not living by those principles.

And they know they’re not. Despite rattling off many of the foods that make up a healthy diet, the only food items that elicited excitement and passion were the notoriously caloric ones: pepperoni pizza, fried chicken, cheeseburgers, ice cream sundaes and French fries. We asked the kids to share their thought on the discrepancy. One boy said, “I know I need to eat healthy foods, but the bad ones are the only ones that taste good.” Alarmingly, the majority of students held a different view. Instead of recognizing that some of their favorite foods were unhealthy, they tried to justify each choice. Strawberry ice cream is healthy because it provides a serving of fruit and dairy. Cheeseburgers are fine as long as you eat one with a slice of tomato and lettuce.  Fettuccini Alfredo is good for you because it doesn’t have any red-meat. If only it were true.

Children often say the darndest things, but this time, these naïve rationales are worth exploring. The fact that these children are already trying to justify poor choices signals things to come. Clearly these kids have some understanding of how to live a healthy lifestyle. They lack practical experience—and role models. The nation is waging war on obesity but victory will only come when we equip the next generation with more than knowledge—they need to experience healthful decision-making first-hand.

Right now, that is not happening. That’s the reason Northlich has continued to engage consumers to gain the understanding of how to affect positive behavior change in this space. As noted before on this blog, the tipping point for the obesity epidemic is quickly approaching. Only those that anticipate and proactively strategize for the impending consumer fallout against products, brands and services that have allowed obesity in America to flourish will remain successful.

posted by Northlich August 24, 2010 in blog, cultural storms, rehavior, unique capabilities