Toys Banned From Unhealthy Kids Meals to Curb Obesity

In Santa Clara County, California, restaurants are being forced to stop giving out toys and other freebies with their kids meals and other high calorie meals. This is the first attempt of it’s kind in the fight against child obesity. County supervisors voted 3-2, which approves the ban of toys at nearly a dozen food chains and other family style restaurants. The law prohibits restaurants in unincorporated parts of the county from giving away goodies unless the meals meet certain nutritional guidelines. Restaurants would face a fine of up to $1,000 if it violates that ban. Read the article here.

Although I love that more people are stepping in and getting involved in steps to curb obesity, I am personally wondering if this is really going to work. A few thoughts:

There are hundreds of thousands of restaurants across the U.S. that are not covered by this ban. This represents millions of children in the rest of the country. Im hoping the “chain effect” method that they hope for works.
Although a toy is a nice treat that is ultimately used to intice kids to want a specific meal, the parents are the ones who are in charge and place the order/make the purchase. Plus, I don’t believe the toy is used to lure kids into the fat, it is used to lure kids into buying from them, period.
What’s to stop these parents from ordering the chicken nuggets, fries and soda anyway? Sometimes, it is the easy route that is obviously taken too often (guilty as charged).

Here’s a thought… the parents are ultimately the ones in charge, we dictate what our children eat and are the ones who purchase the fatty kids meals with 100% fried components. There are other options available these days, even in popular fast food chain restaurants. Choose the grilled chicken strips instead of the fried. Order a small side salad, yogurt, apple sauce or mandarin oranges instead of the fries. Get the milk or apple juice instead of a soda.