Disney Boosts Healthy Nutrition for Kids

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom

While The Disney Company has always been linked to children’s entertainment, they’re now taking a bold new step to promote children’s health. All food products advertised on their ABC-TV child-focused TV programs, radio stations, and web sites must adhere to new nutritional guidelines. And their theme parks will also modify their food offerings, with changes including a 25% reduction in sodium. Considering that Disney parks serve nearly 12 million meals to children every year, this is a big step. While these changes won’t occur until 2015 due to existing contracts, it’s a move in the right direction. 

Disney has already been an active leader in this area, when, in 2006, they largely reduced the association of the Disney name and popular characters with foods high in fat, sugar, and salt. You might recall that the “Toy Story” gang of Buzz Lightyear and company were removed from McDonald’s Happy Meals and that Mickey Mouse disappeared from boxes of Pop-Tarts.

The most recent changes are based on federal guidelines, including the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Federal Trade Commission’s proposed guidelines for food marketing to children. You can check out these guidelines for yourself at www.thewaltdisneycompany.com/mohl.

While this is a great step in the right direction to limit the sale of junk food to children, children and their parents are not being encouraged to replace junk food with healthier foods, fruits, and vegetables. However, Disney-licensed foods in grocery stores that meet the criteria for limited amounts of sugar, fat, and sodium will display a new logo – Mickey Mouse ears with a check mark.

So this is a major step in the right direction for healthier eating for children. But will it have a lasting impact? What do you think?

Five Ways to Fight Childhood Obesity

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom


Last week’s Weight of the Nation meeting in Washington, DC, put a lot of emphasis on fighting childhood obesity – what I like to call “family obesity.” You may not know that UPMC program, the Pittsburgh Healthy Kids Project, was highlighted as a practical, affordable solution to addressing this urgent problem.

We have developed this program – a partnership of the UPMC Health Plan, Children’s Community Pediatrics, and Children’s Hospital – in response to what parents of children struggling with their weight have told us is important to them: (1) involving their pediatrician; (2) insurance coverage; and (3) convenience.

This once-a-month program, offered in the physician’s office and focused on healthy habits for the whole family, has been a rousing success. Since children (unlike adults) continue to gain height, the goal is weight stability, which ultimately results in a slimmer, healthier child. Our five basics of family weight loss, based on recent science, are:

1. Limiting sugary drinks
2. Limiting fast food
3. Eating more family meals together
4. Less screen time (two hours max daily)
5. Being more active.

This is a realistic approach that provides “real world” rather than “perfect world” solutions.

At UPMC, we are pioneers in this field! As a researcher, clinician, and health advisor, I’m thrilled that we’ll be seeing more integrated programs like these for vulnerable children and their families, creating an environment where the point of obesity intervention is early.