Introduction
We are being worn out daily with information about everything from all over with the flare-up of information technology. We have television delivering news at home, a radio in the family car, and at work the internet. We are being presented with new information at every side with this entire media.
Through the media, we are able to know what the latest is, what is hottest, and even what is good or bad. Regardless of whether we acknowledge it or not, the truth is that this information influences our choices. These are choices about our dressing styles, where we visit, what we purchase, and our appearance. The media seeks to enlighten us, convince us, entertain us, and change us. The main goal of doing all this is to engage crowds so that advertisers can market their products and services.
According to recent research, nearly all food-manufacturing companies use images of slim models to advertise their food. The companies do this regardless of how unhealthy the food might be. Over the years, the media has succeeded in painting a picture that associates thinness with beauty.
When the food companies use the images of thin models in their advertisements, they are simply associating the food to being beautiful. This gives people the impression that by eating the food they will be as beautiful as the model in the advert is. This is however not the case since most of those foods are unhealthy and might even cause diseases.
Perhaps the biggest effect of how the media influences eating habits is evident in McDonald advertisements. Research shows that McDonald and other fast food companies run flashy adverts that are appealing to customers. In most cases, the people who watch this adverts end up eating the food being advertised regardless of how unhealthy it is.
It is surprising to note that the food companies do not warn people on the dangers of too much intake of such foods. Worried about the effect that such adverts have on people’s minds, doctors recently unveiled an advert that showed a dead body in a morgue holding a piece of hamburger from McDonald. This advert was meant to prove to consumers that the fast foods that they take could cause death.
The best demonstration to prove that advertisement can influence the food we eat is best seen in the documentary Super Size Me. First, the documentary tries to show us why fast food companies are not genuine in their advertisements. This is achieved by showing just how impossible it is to “eat one chip.”
This shows that people have to purchase plenty of what is on sale to get satisfied. This is seen as a conspiracy by companies to get more customers and more money. The documentary shows how people destroy their health by continuously eating fast foods. Despite this fact, more people are still rushing to MacDonald for a bite of hamburger something that goes ahead to show just how much the media influences our eating habits.
Conclusion
Unlike in the past, it is now easier to get information due to the flare up of information technology. Today, everyone is able to know the latest news wherever they are and at any given time. Fast food companies have taken this opportunity to market their products to a receptive society.
Due to the influence that the media wields, many people are turning out to try the fast foods that they see in their favorite adverts. This is happening regardless of the health problems associated with these foods. This shows that the media is capable of influencing our eating habits.