Teen rebelliousness - could it be used to make them eat healthier food?

Harnessing the rebellious streak among teenagers may help efforts to get youngsters to cut down on junk food, a study suggests.

Researchers in the United States reported that altering the way teenagers see adverts for fast food companies can lead to a change in dietary choices.

The study, from researchers at Chicago Booth University and published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, saw students given an “expose-style article” suggesting fast-food companies were trying to “hook consumers on addictive junk food for financial gain”.

Food marketing is deliberately designed to create positive emotional associations with junk food, to connect it with feelings of happiness and fun.

It found the teenage boys opted to make healthier daily dietary choices in the school’s cafeteria, with researchers linking it to the pupil’s desire to rebel.

Christopher Bryan, from the university, said: “Food marketing is deliberately designed to create positive emotional associations with junk food, to connect it with feelings of happiness and fun.

“What we’ve done is turn that around on the food marketers by exposing this manipulation to teenagers, triggering their natural strong aversion to being controlled by adults.

Maddog wrote:Parents teaching kids about junk food long before high school is the secret to kids eating healthy.  By high school it's hard to change diets.  

Parents that feed their fat little kids junk irritate me to no end.  

Maddog wrote:Parents teaching kids about junk food long before high school is the secret to kids eating healthy.  By high school it's hard to change diets.  

Parents that feed their fat little kids junk irritate me to no end.