The First Amendment is Making Your Kids FAT!

Parke, over on US Food Policy, a daily read of mine, has been posting a series of entries on the problem of obese children. (Hey, I was one of those!) The latest issue, and a favorite target of left-wing politicians, is advertising aimed at children. (I guess this is Chester the Cheetah pushing trans-fats, instead of Joe Camel hooking our kids on nicotine.)

He quotes Marion Nestle who challenges the First Amendment defense of junk food advertising:

I have trouble with this first amendment argument. I imagine back to our forefathers who wrote the first amendment sitting around a table saying, “how are we going to guarantee freedom of speech for people who have diverse religious beliefs?” They were NOT sitting around that table saying, “how can we defend the right of makers of junky cereals to market their products to kids?” I think we have a real problem with this. Some lawyers should take a look at the first amendment and start using it for what it was for.

The problem with this argument, like the one that it challenges, is that it is beside the point. The point is not what the First Amendment allows, just like the fundamental issue with guns is not what the Second Amendment allows. People should have the right to bear arms because people have a fundamental need to protect themselves and few things are better protection for individuals, especially the weak, than a gun. The Constitution is not sacrosanct. It can be changed -- and rightfully has been more than a dozen times by amendment (and more than that by judicial activism).

Junk food should be allowed to be advertised, even to children, because it's not wrong for them to eat it. What's wrong -- or rather, unhealthy -- is for them to eat too much of it. And the advertising isn't doing that to them. Is there a child who doesn't know about junk food? Face it, junk food tastes good. It's all fat, sugar, salt, and MSG -- what's not to like?

Trying to shelter kids from advertising isn't going to be effective. The answer is much tougher: training kids to restrain themselves and educating palates to enjoy more than simple tastes.

Posted by extramsg at 9/15/2005