Image source - http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/kids-packaging-the-dieline-172715

It can be a struggle getting children to eat healthy and nutritious foods, particularly after they have become accustomed to eating sugary and salty foods. Unfortunately the body craves sugar and it craves salt, and if eaten a lot it can be difficult to give up. Parents often face a daily battle of encouraging their children to eat their greens and not just their chips. Some succeed and some do not. So what is it that contributes to children wanting certain foods over others?

Packaging plays a huge role in the distribution of food products. Appealing packaging that entices the buyer is often more likely to be bought over the plain and mundane packaging. Of course the packaging doesn’t always represent the quality of the produce inside but it certainly makes it look better, and if it’s a popular brand name it’s even more appealing. Just like adults children are influenced by what they see and though they are not the buyer they can certainly nag at parents to buy it for them. Food catered to children is typically covered in bright and colourful writing, cartoon characters, animals and so on. It’s not only on the foods label though, it’s advertised on adverts and on billboards. Unfortunately the majority of these foods are on sugary cereals, chocolate bars, packets of sweets and other unhealthy foods and drinks. 

With that in mind it was suggested by the Research Institute for Child Nutrition in Dortmund, and a group of scientists from Bonn University in Germany, that packaging could be used to encourage healthy eating in children. 

The theory was put to the test to see just how well it would work. The group enlisted 179 children to partake in the experiment aged between eight and ten years of age. The task was simple, each child was to choose from three identical yoghurt, fruit and cereal bars each with a different type of packaging.  The first was plain, the second contained health information and the third had a colourful product name and cartoon characters. 

When choosing which product they would like the children’s hand grip strength was measured to determine how motivated they were. The results showed that the children were much keener to pick the product with the colourful packaging over those in the plain packaging. Source - http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/interactive/news/kids-pick-healthy-food-with-attractive-packaging-id801792201-t116.html

It is therefore suggested that healthy eating could be promoted by presenting children with healthy foods packaged in colourful food packaging. The idea could hopefully help tackle obesity levels in children and tooth decay. 

Image source - http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/kids-packaging-the-dieline-172715

It can be a struggle getting children to eat healthy and nutritious foods, particularly after they have become accustomed to eating sugary and salty foods. Unfortunately the body craves sugar and it craves salt, and if eaten a lot it can be difficult to give up. Parents often face a daily battle of encouraging their children to eat their greens and not just their chips. Some succeed and some do not. So what is it that contributes to children wanting certain foods over others?

Packaging plays a huge role in the distribution of food products. Appealing packaging that entices the buyer is often more likely to be bought over the plain and mundane packaging. Of course the packaging doesn’t always represent the quality of the produce inside but it certainly makes it look better, and if it’s a popular brand name it’s even more appealing. Just like adults children are influenced by what they see and though they are not the buyer they can certainly nag at parents to buy it for them. Food catered to children is typically covered in bright and colourful writing, cartoon characters, animals and so on. It’s not only on the foods label though, it’s advertised on adverts and on billboards. Unfortunately the majority of these foods are on sugary cereals, chocolate bars, packets of sweets and other unhealthy foods and drinks. 

With that in mind it was suggested by the Research Institute for Child Nutrition in Dortmund, and a group of scientists from Bonn University in Germany, that packaging could be used to encourage healthy eating in children. 

The theory was put to the test to see just how well it would work. The group enlisted 179 children to partake in the experiment aged between eight and ten years of age. The task was simple, each child was to choose from three identical yoghurt, fruit and cereal bars each with a different type of packaging.  The first was plain, the second contained health information and the third had a colourful product name and cartoon characters. 

When choosing which product they would like the children’s hand grip strength was measured to determine how motivated they were. The results showed that the children were much keener to pick the product with the colourful packaging over those in the plain packaging. Source - http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/interactive/news/kids-pick-healthy-food-with-attractive-packaging-id801792201-t116.html

It is therefore suggested that healthy eating could be promoted by presenting children with healthy foods packaged in colourful food packaging. The idea could hopefully help tackle obesity levels in children and tooth decay.