Teenagers understand healthy eating but unhealthy habits persist says Siân Harrington
McDonald’s has been one of the healthy eating army’s more predictable targets. But new research suggests teenagers are not lovin’ it as much as the chain’s detractors would like to think.
Only 8% of 11 to 18-year-olds surveyed said McDonald’s was their favourite food. And 87% of the 800 teenagers in the sample said they ate fast food once a week or less, which is within recommended guidelines. In fact, their favourite meal was pasta, favoured by one-fifth. Pizza and a roast dinner came next, with 14% liking these meals best. Within the 16 to 18-year-old age group, roast was top, curry came second and pasta third.
So is the view that high-street fast food chains are to blame for children’s growing obesity ill-informed? Do children understand the healthy-eating message better than their parents, and act accordingly?
Ninety per cent of the teenagers at a large Surrey comprehensive who took part in the Teen Vision survey by Coutts Retail Communications claim to eat healthily most of the time. The survey also indicates they are beginning to develop an understanding of what constitutes a healthy option, particularly in fast food outlets.
Unfortunately, teenagers interviewed in front of their peers may not give entirely honest answers, as the claim that they eat healthily most of the time suggests. The survey also reveals that while they may understand what constitutes a healthy diet, they are failing to translate this into practice.
Chips, kebabs, a full English breakfast, McDonald’s and KFC come low on their list of favourite meals. But more than two-thirds of 11 to 15-year-olds say chocolate or crisps are their favourite snacks. Within the 16 to 18-year-old category, chocolate is well ahead at 40%, with crisps second at 14%.
When it comes to drinks, cola tops the 11 to 15-year-olds’ list, with 27% describing it as their favourite, closely followed by other fizzy drinks such as 7UP and Tango, favoured by 26%. It is also bad news for an alcohol industry that is desperate to rid itself of the under-age drinking tag. Alcohol comes out third within this age group and second within the 16 to 18 year-olds.
The choice of such food and drinks is not necessarily a bad thing, aside from the alcohol issue. After all, a balanced diet allows for treats. The issue is how often they are consumed. And among the children at this school it is frequently. Some 42% of 11 to 15-year-olds have chocolate or sweets and a third have fizzy drinks at least once a day, while 29% eat crisps every day and one in 10 more than once a day.
Conversely, fewer than half of the 11 to 15-year-olds eat at least one piece of fruit every day, with a quarter eating it once a week or less. This is despite nearly two-thirds understanding what 5-a-day means.
Yet when asked if there are any foods they thought they should eat more of, nearly half of 16 to 18-year-olds say fruit and vegetables. And when asked if healthy choices are available at McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC, the vast majority pinpoint correctly what is available.
According to Catherine Dixon, group marketing manager at Coutts, the research shows there is plenty of information about healthy diets available, but teenagers continue to make dysfunctional choices. “The answers show a strong understanding of dietary requirements, but knowledge isn’t necessarily equaling action,” she says.
While 16 to 18-year-olds are “technically adults with the education and knowledge to make their choices”, says Dixon, the research also shows that 42% of 11 to 18-year-olds do not like food shopping and most are still dependent on their parents or others in authority for food decisions. If these people
Teenagers’ understanding of food and fail in their responsibilities, then any attempt by this age group to be healthy will fail.
“Restaurants have the power to mislead. Salads are blindly believed to be healthy by this age group, but the dressing on a Caesar salad can make it as fatty as a Big Mac. Moreover, salads prepared in advance often lose their nutritional value quickly. So if the restaurants aren’t doing their job as gatekeeper, this age group can’t win.”
What is clear is that the government has a difficult task ahead if it is to change teenager behaviour. Dixon says that more research is required into why they make poor choices.
“Once this is understood in greater depth, perhaps advertising could be created that would trigger behavioural change.”
Coutts is trying to get such research off the ground in conjunction with London Metropolitan University.
But in the meantime, if the government wants tips on how to get through to teenagers, it would be wise to note that 73% of those surveyed could recall specific food and drink adverts that used humour and repetition - not those that relied on scary facts and figures.
McDonald’s has been one of the healthy eating army’s more predictable targets. But new research suggests teenagers are not lovin’ it as much as the chain’s detractors would like to think.
Only 8% of 11 to 18-year-olds surveyed said McDonald’s was their favourite food. And 87% of the 800 teenagers in the sample said they ate fast food once a week or less, which is within recommended guidelines. In fact, their favourite meal was pasta, favoured by one-fifth. Pizza and a roast dinner came next, with 14% liking these meals best. Within the 16 to 18-year-old age group, roast was top, curry came second and pasta third.
So is the view that high-street fast food chains are to blame for children’s growing obesity ill-informed? Do children understand the healthy-eating message better than their parents, and act accordingly?
Ninety per cent of the teenagers at a large Surrey comprehensive who took part in the Teen Vision survey by Coutts Retail Communications claim to eat healthily most of the time. The survey also indicates they are beginning to develop an understanding of what constitutes a healthy option, particularly in fast food outlets.
Unfortunately, teenagers interviewed in front of their peers may not give entirely honest answers, as the claim that they eat healthily most of the time suggests. The survey also reveals that while they may understand what constitutes a healthy diet, they are failing to translate this into practice.
Chips, kebabs, a full English breakfast, McDonald’s and KFC come low on their list of favourite meals. But more than two-thirds of 11 to 15-year-olds say chocolate or crisps are their favourite snacks. Within the 16 to 18-year-old category, chocolate is well ahead at 40%, with crisps second at 14%.
When it comes to drinks, cola tops the 11 to 15-year-olds’ list, with 27% describing it as their favourite, closely followed by other fizzy drinks such as 7UP and Tango, favoured by 26%. It is also bad news for an alcohol industry that is desperate to rid itself of the under-age drinking tag. Alcohol comes out third within this age group and second within the 16 to 18 year-olds.
The choice of such food and drinks is not necessarily a bad thing, aside from the alcohol issue. After all, a balanced diet allows for treats. The issue is how often they are consumed. And among the children at this school it is frequently. Some 42% of 11 to 15-year-olds have chocolate or sweets and a third have fizzy drinks at least once a day, while 29% eat crisps every day and one in 10 more than once a day.
Conversely, fewer than half of the 11 to 15-year-olds eat at least one piece of fruit every day, with a quarter eating it once a week or less. This is despite nearly two-thirds understanding what 5-a-day means.
Yet when asked if there are any foods they thought they should eat more of, nearly half of 16 to 18-year-olds say fruit and vegetables. And when asked if healthy choices are available at McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC, the vast majority pinpoint correctly what is available.
According to Catherine Dixon, group marketing manager at Coutts, the research shows there is plenty of information about healthy diets available, but teenagers continue to make dysfunctional choices. “The answers show a strong understanding of dietary requirements, but knowledge isn’t necessarily equaling action,” she says.
While 16 to 18-year-olds are “technically adults with the education and knowledge to make their choices”, says Dixon, the research also shows that 42% of 11 to 18-year-olds do not like food shopping and most are still dependent on their parents or others in authority for food decisions. If these people
Teenagers’ understanding of food and fail in their responsibilities, then any attempt by this age group to be healthy will fail.
“Restaurants have the power to mislead. Salads are blindly believed to be healthy by this age group, but the dressing on a Caesar salad can make it as fatty as a Big Mac. Moreover, salads prepared in advance often lose their nutritional value quickly. So if the restaurants aren’t doing their job as gatekeeper, this age group can’t win.”
What is clear is that the government has a difficult task ahead if it is to change teenager behaviour. Dixon says that more research is required into why they make poor choices.
“Once this is understood in greater depth, perhaps advertising could be created that would trigger behavioural change.”
Coutts is trying to get such research off the ground in conjunction with London Metropolitan University.
But in the meantime, if the government wants tips on how to get through to teenagers, it would be wise to note that 73% of those surveyed could recall specific food and drink adverts that used humour and repetition - not those that relied on scary facts and figures.
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