Study: Children Nag Parents for Junk Food

Kids nag their parents to buy them unhealthy foods (junk foods), finds recent study.

Using quantitative and qualitative methodologies, researchers interviewed 64 mothers of children ages 3 to 5 years between October 2006 and July 2007.

Mothers answered questions about the household environment, themselves, their child's demographics, media use, eating and shopping patterns, and requests for advertised items.

Participants were also asked to describe their experiences and strategies for dealing with the "Nag Factor."

Borzekowski and colleagues found that nagging seemed to fall into three categories: juvenile nagging, nagging to test boundaries, and manipulative nagging.

Mothers consistently cited 10 strategies for dealing with the nagging; the strategies included giving in, yelling, ignoring, distracting, staying calm and consistent, avoiding the commercial environment, negotiating and setting rules, allowing alternative items, explaining the reasoning behind choices, and limiting commercial exposure.

"Our study indicates that manipulative nagging and overall nagging increased with age," said Holly Henry, MHS, lead author of the study and a PhD candidate with the Bloomberg School's Department of Health, Behavior and Society.

"When it comes to the most commonly cited strategies for dealing with nagging, 36 percent of mothers suggested limiting commercial exposure and 35 percent of mothers suggested simply explaining to children the reasons behind making or not making certain purchases," she added.

The study was recently published in the Journal of Children and Media.

Source: ANI