20% of parents say kids eat fast food more often

In the past few months, one in five parents reported that their children ate fast food more often, a recent poll showed.

On the other hand, about two in three parents said their family meals have been healthier.

“There really seems like almost two different groups of parents going on here,” Gary L. Freed, MD, MPH, a poll co-director and a pediatrician at the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, told Healio Primary Care.

The poll was administered in June to 2,019 parents with children aged 3 to 18 years. According to the results, 16% of parents said their child consumed fast food at least twice a week; 20% of parents said they were “too stressed” to cook and 40% said they were “too busy” to cook.

The poll also showed that regarding fast food:

• 24% of parents said it cost less than a home-cooked meal;
• 33% said it was a “good value for the money;”
• 33% said they perused a child’s selection for nutritional content;
• 72% said it was a “good option when stressed for time;”
• 84% said it was OK to eat in “moderation;”
• 85% said it was not a healthy choice for their kids; and
• 88% allowed their children to choose what they ate.

More parents of children who were overweight reported that they had fast food at least twice a week than parents of children with a normal weight (33% vs 17%).

The results should not be interpreted as “some parents are bad, and some parents are good,” according to Freed. Instead, it is about getting “parents who, for whatever reason, take their kids to fast-food restaurants twice a week ... to choose healthier options,” he continued.

Gary L. Freed

Freed also warned against the consumption of sugary drinks, which have been link to tooth decay and obesity. A child’s wellness visit provides physicians with an opportune moment to discuss healthy food choices with patients and parents, he said in the interview.

“Maybe we need to get past [questions like] ‘How many times a week do you eat fast food?’” Freed said, and instead, “talk about making [eating out] as healthy an experience as possible, like having milk instead of Coke.”

“That's a reasonable option, especially in younger kids,” he added.

References:

C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. 1 in 5 parents say kids eat fast food more often since pandemic.. https://mottpoll.org/reports/parent-views-fast-food-and-family-meals. Accessed Sept. 20, 2021.

C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital Poll. Parent views on fast food and family meals. https://mottpoll.org/sites/default/files/documents/092021_FastFood.pdf. Accessed Sept. 20, 2021.