In 2007, major food and beverage companies made their own pinky promise to families and children. They pledged to self-regulate the number of ads targeting children with unhealthy dietary choices. This pledge was called the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative.

They’ve broken that pledge.

A recent study has shown that U.S. Spanish-Language television ads target children at a higher rate than children on English-language television with unhealthy fast food and sugary drinks. With over 80% of commercials shown during Spanish-language children’s shows, Latino children have become a target, with a giant bull’s eye strapped to their backs.

Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its Healthy Eating Research program, the study, “Food Marketing to Children on U.S. Spanish-Language Television,” is the first large-scale effort to analyze food and beverage advertising on Spanish-language children’s television.

The authors analyzed over 150 Spanish language children’s television programs. Utilizing a food rating system from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, it was determined that the nutritional quality of food products on Spanish-language channels was substantially lower than English channels. In fact, the majority of the advertising included unhealthy food products, like candy, sugary cereals, fries and sodas, while ads for healthy foods, such as fruits and vegetables, were extremely rare and accounted for lower than 1% of the ads shown.

Food and beverage companies agreed to self-regulate.

They pledged a solemn oath to encourage healthier dietary choices and lifestyles in children. They pinky promised.

Isn’t it time these companies are held accountable for their marketing practices?

Photo Credit:tungphoto/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

ingredients
2 cups of strawberries diced
1/2 cup sweet white onions diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
juice of half lime
1 1/2 teaspoon of liquid sweetener such as agave, brown rice syrup or honey
1 TB of jalapenpo
salt to taste
1 tsp aged balsamic vinegar, optional

directions
Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl and chill for about an hour before serving.

Cafeteria Man is a 65-minute documentary about one school district’s move toward a healthier and more sustainable food program. The film is an inspiring portrayal of the possibilities, as well as a realistic view of the challenges of transforming school food, and the importance of local leadership from parents, students and others to overcome these challenges.

Cafeteria Man follows chef Tony Geraci’s ambitious efforts in Baltimore City Public Schools, a large urban district that serves 83,000 students. Responding to student complaints about the unappealing, pre-plated food being served, Baltimore hired Geraci as Food and Nutrition Director of the city’s schools. Chef Geraci launched a sweeping, multi-faceted plan to transform not just what students eat, but their whole relationship to food. His vision included student-designed meals, locally sourced foods, nutrition education in the classroom, and school vegetable gardens.

Specialty Studios invites you to host a screening of Cafeteria Man to spark collective discussion about what’s possible in YOUR community and to inspire local change.  Organizing a screening event can help bring together the different constituencies you need to make change in school food programs — parents, students, sympathetic staff, childhood health organizations and local farmers.

Use the free downloadable event & school action guide and publicity materials to help you organize an effective screening, and find the resources & tools you need to radically improve the quality of food served in your school or district. 

Not only will our children’s health improve but, according to the California Department of Education, over 77 percent of students in environment-based education programs, such as school gardens, scored higher than their peers across all standardized tests, had higher grade point averages, and greater self-confidence and social skills. 

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — I just got back from the 4th annual Salud America! Latino health summit. Researchers, policy analysts, public health advocates and elected leaders gathered to discuss the most pressing health concerns facing the U.S. Latino community.

Once under the auspice of “childhood obesity”, grassroots activists and researchers painted a much broader and more complex picture: many of the health challenges facing the Latino community is systemic and environmental. We must implement policies that bring physical education back to schools; build parks and bike lanes to promote outdoor activity; make sure that all communities have access to fresh produce; and curb junk food marketing to children — which is increasingly becoming digital and harder for parents to monitor on their own.

“Don’t reduce obesity to a disease that needs to be cured,” said Dr. George Flores, program manager for The California Endowment’s Healthy California Prevention team. “It’s an opportunity for equity.”

Photo on right: Here is a man who takes public health very seriously: New York Assemblyman Félix Ortiz. From the time he was a child and circulated his first public petition asking the Governor of his native Puerto Rico to support the formation of a youth baseball league, he has successfully helped draft and implement public health policies in New York: the first law in New York — and the country! — to prohibit hand-held cell phones while driving; a law that provides farmers with economic relief by requiring schools to purchase locally grown produce; a law to ensure that nutritionally based education programs be a part of every classroom; and a law to create five eating disorder centers across the state to help those who suffer from eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia.

Latinos are the largest minority group in the country, accounting for 50.5 million people in 2010. “The increasing presence of Latinos in the United States will impact all institutions,” said Dr. Rogelio Sáenz, Dean of the College of Public Policy at the University of Texas at San Antonio.

I was heartened by the promising statistics and stories that came out of the summit. The high school dropout rate among Latinos in the last 10 years has been cut in half and Latino youth are going to college at a faster rate than even their Caucasian counterparts. The Latina teen pregnancy rate and fertility rate, in general, has dropped with upward mobility.

In terms of health epidemics facing the community, such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease, there is a lot of grassroots energy on the ground to turn this around. Latino elected officials with the help of their constituents are helping transform “food deserts” and neighborhoods dotted by crime and blight into healthy-living hubs. Latino youth and parents especially are empowered and demanding that healthy food options be available in their local supermarkets and schools.

Photo on left: Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, Director of Salud America! and Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, has moved mountains in the area of Latino health. All the research, the amazing speakers we got to network with and the summit could not have happened without her. Photo on right: Paul Lopez, a Denver City Council member and a member of the board of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), gave an inspiring presentation with “before” and “after” pictures of his childhood neighborhood, which now has a grocery store, community gardens at its schools, and soon, a park.

On a personal note, it was my first time in San Antonio and I fell in love with the city. What is a health conference without downtime to explore the great outdoors? Enjoy!

Photo: The outside space of the South Texas Heritage Center at the Witte Museum is lush and beautiful. In general, I was pleasantly surprised at how much green space San Antonio had — not at all what I expected with the punishing heat.

Photos: My friend Elsa took me to Mi Tierra, a Mexican restaurant in the market and hands-down the best place I’ve eaten chicken enchiladas verdes. I loved the decor of the restaurant, too, especially the mural of Latino leaders and celebrities.

Photo: And how could I visit San Antonio without stopping at the Alamo?

The new Salud America! “Healthier School Snacks & Latino Kids” research materials, which can be found at www.salud-america.org, include:

• A research review with the latest science;
• An issue brief (lay summary of the review);
• An infographic; and
• An animated video

This is the first of six new research material packages to be released over the summer by Salud America!, each of which will focus on a specific topic on Latino childhood obesity and highlight the issue, policy implications and future research areas.

The “Healthier School Snacks & Latino Kids” package highlights the fact that young people consume a high proportion of their daily calories at school.

“Research shows that access to unhealthy snack foods and beverages in schools has a disproportionately negative health influence among Latino students, and schools with a higher proportion of Latino students tend to have weaker policies regarding access to and nutritional values of these items,” said Amelie G. Ramirez, director of Salud America!, based at the Institute for Health Promotion Research at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. Salud America! is a national network of stakeholders seeking environmental and policy solutions to Latino obesity.

“By 2050, 35 percent of young people in the U.S. will be Latino. Providing healthier school snacks and drinks can help make sure this growing population is healthy,” Ramirez said.

To learn more, visit www.salud-america.org.

Every Tuesday, I try to write something I learn or take away from raising kids with disabilities. This week, it’s a little more closer to home, in that I’m thinking about how raising my children has directly changed my life.

In fact, it’s directly changed every single item that lines my pantry and fridge.

About 2 years ago, we started on this so-called “autism diet” journey. I hate calling it that, because I only have one child with autism and yet we nearly all eat like this. To start, it’s simple: first remove caseins, which pretty much means any and all dairy products, then glutens, then soy, then anything else you think affect your kids. We just thought it would be easier to put both children on the diet, even though Amelia does not have autism.

We did that, and within a week or two, Zoe, who at age 5 had not slept through a solid night since birth, was peacefully sleeping 8 or more hours in a row. And bonus: my OTHER daughter’s focus, attention, and academic success improved. I know this because about 3 or so weeks later, I started getting comments like, “Wow! Amelia’s doing better than ever on (INSERT SKILL HERE)” from her teachers, without any prompting or questions from me.

Eventually we removed gluten, and it’s taken years to refine that removal. We experimented with different things like low phenols or Failsafe Diet. We removed toxic cookware & containers. We switched to ONLY organic meat. We dropped MSG, GMOs, corn, soy, dyes, preservatives, sugar, we nearly eliminated rice. We changed brands and eventually dropped just about everything that comes in a package except bread and the occasion bags of chips or cookies. I switched to coconut oil for 90% of my cooking, sunflower oil for most else, and occasionally use olive oil. I baked a ton, and then less, and then more again, experimenting with everything from gluten-free flour to coconut flour. We permanently switched from peanut butter to sunbutter.

AND we did almost all of this for the kids exclusively, focusing on making the “autism diet” part of our life.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the kitchen, lol…

I can’t eat things that I used to anymore. It’s not just that soda tastes weird now, it actually tastes like poison. Chinese food? Ugh. My husband brought me home a burger against my wishes last week from a fast food change that features a clown, it tasted and felt like LEAD. My water is now flouridated and tastes horrible. I can tell when the meat’s not organic and grass fed, and it sucks. Deep frying gives me the willies – this from the girl who adores fried mushrooms in horseradish. It would probably make me sick now.

Last week, I tried a slice of deli cheese. I ALMOST BARFED. I was shocked that I can’t even eat that anymore.

Far from upsetting me, though, I feel like I’ve finally reached a “good place to be.” At the ripe old age of 47, I’ve discovered healthy eating, thanks to the autism diet. I don’t always buy organic produce, but I take what I do know and avoid the worst of the worst while still getting my fruits and veggies in daily, if possible. I’ve officially divorced pizza, and yes, it was exactly like a bad break up. I actually feel bad if I haven’t done my fruits and veggies, and drinking water is something I’m trying to increase.

So a great big thank to you my children, for your food sensitivities have made me a champion of healthy, clean food, and that has slimmed me, made me feel better, boosted my energy, regulated my body, and sharpened my brain. Not only THAT, but I’m far more schooled in what’s healthy, how my body works and processes things, and which nutrients and food choices trump others.

And best of all, know what I learned? That food that is GOOD for you really tastes good. The closer to nature you can get it, the better it feels, the more savory it is, the nicer it cooks. Yes, it’s more difficult to find and getting these foods at a good price is a challenge – but a worthy one that made me feel good when I realized that cooking more cuts your budget by quite a lot! I wouldn’t go back for the world, and I honestly believe that eating like this will reduce my chances of getting a nasty disease or aging ungraciously.

Thanks, girls, you’ve made me smarter!

Image courtesy of Grant Cochrane / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Dear Moms

” If every Mom knew how awesome they are , every problem in the world would be fixed.” – Kid President

When I watched the following video,  my heart giggled. My soul glowed and I thought of all the times when I stopped, looked and listened to the glory of childhood…and sometimes even joined in with a booty shake and high five. The awesomeness of being a Mom is not all the things we do, but it how present we are to what we are doing.

In short, it’s who we are BEING. Mostly I don’t take the time to think about or create that, but when I do, when I choose that Today is the Day that I am being Courageous, Creative and a Contribution…whoa, watch out world…things are done that have never been done. My kids get a Mom who is happy to build a volcano with them instead of resentful.  I reach out and do activism in the world to make  a future for our kids great in ways I never imagined before. And when I see other moms being present with their kids, being gentle, curious and giggly, I know that all our activism is for those moments…the fleeting, magical, moment of love and delight.

So on Mother’s Day I invite every Mom on my way-up-there-on-a-pedestal-community MomsRising, to really get how awesome you are. Not because of all the doing, but because of who you are being. You are being your kids champion. You are being Courageous, Creative and a Contribution. You are the Gateway to Adventure! You are the most awesome person on the planet to at least one person and in their eyes, you can do anything.  Look at yourself through their eyes on Mother’s Day…because theirs is the most beautiful perspective in the world.

Kid President Message for Moms

Zen Honeycutt

As founder of Moms Across America, along with fellow Mom Kathleen Hallal,  our mission is Empowered Moms, Healthy Kids. Our current commitment is to empower millions to educate themselves about genetically modified organisms or GMOs, label them and offer America GMO free solutions.  

We have created the Moms Across America March to Label GMOs on July 4th. We have  partners all across the nation like Robyn O’Brien ( Mom of 4 and TedX Talk speaker “Patriotism on a Plate”),  LabelGMOs.org, The CA State Grange, GMO Free USA ( Mom Diana Reeves), Green America/GMO inside, March Against Monsanto (Mom Tami Monroe), Institute for Responsible Technology, NYR Organics,  Dr. Bronners, Nature’s Path, Nutivia, Holistic Moms and many more.

We hope you will join us in marching in parade on the 4th of July in your hometown or town on vacation near you. This is  the one opportunity we have to share our message with thousands locally and millions nationally, who are ready, waiting and interested.  So grab a balloon, your kids and trike and join us!

Sign up at http://www.momsacrossamerica.com/

For more info about GMOs go to http://www.momsacrossamerica.com/gmo

Every year, MomsRising comes up with a creative way to tell Mom she’s the best. This year, the inspiration came from all the cool dances we’ve seen (and, yes, maybe tried). Everything from a healthy food Harlem Shake (with a real Harlem Shake dancer) to a fair pay fandango is in there. It’s a lot of fun!

Check it out and let us know what you think! Tweet @MomsRising or leave a comment right here. Thank you!

And BIG thanks to all those who are sharing it! Here are some other sites where you can find the #momdance:

• Bolder Advocacy
• WHNT, Huntsville, AL
• MomTini Lounge
• Belinda Brock.com

A little Friday fun from @momsrising OFA.BO/qxsJbk Happy Mother’s Day weekend!

— OFA (@OFA) May 10, 2013

Happy Mother’s Day! Make all the moms you know smile with this video from @momsrising – momdance.com #MomDance

— Atlantic (@atlantic) May 12, 2013

My fav Mother’s Day #video is @momsrising‘s #MomDance! momdance.com

— dream hampton (@dreamhampton) May 12, 2013

RT @mslatina: @mommylok Girl who U telling! We’re multi-tasking mavens! Btw, ck out momdance.com video by @momsrising LOVE cc:…

This video from @momsrising is a must-see for any mom. bit.ly/12jlUOq #momdance

Let’s talk about your mom. Because she’s awesome. Time for a #momdance. By @momsrising. upwr.me/11w5jeE

— Upworthy (@Upworthy) May 12, 2013

— AAUW (@AAUW) May 12, 2013

 

Happy Mother’s Day! Take 5min for a little #MomDance–> momdance.com via @momsrising

— BCF_Media (@BCF_Media) May 12, 2013

 

— Maria Wen Adcock (@BiculturalMama) May 11, 2013

A little Friday fun from @momsrising: OFA.BO/qxsJbk Happy Mother’s Day weekend!

— Lisa M. Maatz (@LisaMaatz) May 10, 2013

And Honest Toddler favorited our tweet about the video. Just sayin’.

Got a blog? Are you on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest? Let us know in the comments if you share and we’ll link to you here too! Thank you!

In response to hundreds of calls Trader Joe’s headquarters has been getting from customers asking them to stop selling meat raised on antibiotics, the company has issued a statement on their website.

“We don’t presume to make choices for [customers],” it says, and points to some options shoppers have in their stores of organic and ‘no antibotics’ meat.

But, they say, they also sell conventional meat, “where antibiotics are likely used.”

Lots of grocery stores – in fact most,by our own surveys – give customers options of meat raised without antibiotics.   What we’re asking, along with over half a million TJ’s shoppers, is for the company to take a stand for public health and refuse to sell these products.

There’s a big difference.

The overuse of antibiotics is rampant in conventional meat production.  The drugs make animals grow faster and allow them to tolerate cramped, unsanitary living conditions common on factory farms.   But that’s not how
antibiotics are meant to be used.  Just as in humans, antibiotics should only be given when an animal is sick.   The widespread use of these drugs on industrial farms creates antibiotic-resistant ‘superbugs’ that are harder to treat.  These superbugs migrate off the farms through the air, soil and water, and as a Consumer Reports study just found, in the very meat we eat.

While providing customers with a choice is a positive step, it’s simply not good enough given the public health crisis we’re facing as antibiotics lose their power.  As long as Trader Joe’s continues to carry meat from healthy animals that are routinely fed antibiotics, the company is contributing to the development and spread of antibiotic resistance.

Trader Joe’s customers are looking for the company to be an industry leader and say ‘no more’ to selling meat from animals on antibiotics.  And despite the company’s claim of wanting to give shoppers ‘choices’ in their stores, people are pretty used to Trader Joe’s making smart decisions about their product offerings – just look at their policies around no GMOs and sustainable seafood and cage-free egg requirements.

TJ’s shoppers trust the company to offer healthful, high-quality products that they feel good about buying and feeding to their families.  That’s why asking the company to stop selling meat on drugs has resonated with so many of their customers and compelled them to pick up the phone.

Have you made a call yet?  Give TJ’s headquarters a quick buzz at (626) 599-3700.  and tell them that your ‘choice’ is to save antibiotics for when they’re really needed and to stop selling meat from animals raised on the drugs. 

This blog is cross-posted on www.NotInMyFood.org

But, I swear, there’s no repeating necessary when it comes to Elmo. That little red Muppet caught my 17-month-old son’s attention in an instant. Having seen one picture in a book, he now remembers everything about Elmo and recognizes his image everywhere. That’s the power of marketing to kids.

And when it comes to fast-food marketing to children, McDonald’s is one of the worst offenders. For decades, the fast food giant has profited richly at a staggering cost to our children’s health.

That’s why I’m so fired up about Corporate Accountability International’s Value [the] Meal campaign’s latest initiative. It’s rallying moms across the country to call on McDonald’s CEO Don Thompson to stop the corporation’s predatory marketing to kids.

Darn right I’m a “gatekeeper”

Here’s the thing. I do everything I can to help my son eat well and lead a healthy life. And I keep our media consumption to a minimum. We don’t watch much TV or have a lot of screen time. Luckily for me, he’s not quite aware of billboards or other advertising … yet.

But I know it’s only a matter of time. That’s because McDonald’s goes out of its way to get around parents’ choices for their children by marketing its burgers and fries directly to kids. I am not looking forward to explaining why he can’t have the junk food he thinks he wants so badly.

McDonald’s, like many other global corporations, works to create brand loyalty at a young age. It uses characters like Ronald McDonald to create an emotional attachment in kids and an association of happiness with its product. And it puts those images everywhere where children are from schools, to libraries, to hospitals. McDonald’s is trying to get to your kids before you do.

McDonald’s marketers actually refer to parents as “gatekeepers.” The food giant sees it as a problem that I am guiding my child to healthy choices. If it can only get us pesky mothers out of the way, it would have full access to get kids hooked on junk food.

But McDonald’s fast-food marketing is not only undermining moms, it’s driving a public health crisis. To quote from the Corporate Accountability International report, Clowning with Kid’s Health: The Case for Ronald McDonald’s Retirement:

Far from being “happy meals,” McDonald’s food is responsible for such social ills as heart disease, diabetes, animal welfare abuses, labor exploitation, unceasing environmental destruction, and the breakdown of our food system.

Ending marketing to kids protects their health

Marketing directly to children is not a new idea. Tobacco corporations wrote the playbook on it. And a growing body of research finds marketing of junk food to kids is not unlike marketing tobacco. The product is purposefully engineered to be highly addictive — something McDonald’s isn’t spreading the news about.

The good news? We can protect kids’ health by halting harmful marketing. 

In the 1990s, Corporate Accountability International was instrumental in retiring kid-friendly cigarette icon Joe Camel. And a few years later, the organization rallied a coalition of advocates around the world to ensure the passage of the global tobacco treaty.

This treaty enshrines the most effective tobacco-control measures, including banning of tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship: highly effective in preventing youth addiction. When fully implemented, the treaty will save 200 million lives by 2050.

Help pressure McDonald’s

That’s why Corporate Accountability International is coordinating an online action in celebration of Mother’s Day. Together, we’ll pressure the burger giant to quit marketing to kids.

You can join the action! If you have a blog, post this image today with your thoughts on how McDonald’s tries to circumvent your parenting choices. Or, post it on any of the social media sites you hang out in: Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Pinterest, etc.:

And don’t to forget to use hashtag #MomsNotLovinIt. For example, here’s a tweet:

“All I want for Mother’s Day is for McDonald’s to stop marketing junk food to my kids. #MomsNotLovinIt”

If you’re wondering whether McDonald’s execs will pay attention to moms’ voices online, well, you already have their attention. McDonald’s spends significant time, money and resources every year trying to recruit moms who blog. Its party at the BlogHer conference is notorious, for example. McDonald’s is already listening to you.

So this Mother’s Day, let’s all ask for something we really want: for McDonald’s to stop trying to undermine our choices for our kids.

My son J. enjoys a homemade PB&J