Teenagers’ natural desire to rebel against authority could be tapped to drive them to replace junk food with healthier choices, a study has found.
Food marketing, designed to foster strong positive associations with junk food in kids’ minds and to drive overeating, is one of the biggest obstacles in the public fight against obesity.
The study, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, found that a simple and brief intervention can provide lasting protection for adolescents against these harmful effects of food marketing.
The method works in part by tapping into teens’ natural desire to rebel against authority, researchers said.
The team from the University of Chicago in the US went into classrooms and had one group of students read a fact-based, expose-style article on big food companies.
