An advertising campaign addressing anti-obesity among children has come under fire in America. Many parents feel Strong4Life and their “Stop Sugarcoating” campaign blames the victims. One advert sees a chubby, young girl who stands with her arms crossed facing the camera. The tagline reads: “WARNING: It’s hard to be a little girl if you’re not.”

The Strong4Life campaign and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta produced these ads after surveying parents in two Georgia towns. They discovered that 75 percent of parents with obese children were not aware that their children were overweight, while 50 percent of parents didn’t realise that childhood obesity was a problem to begin with.

The advertisements, which include both print ads and TV spots, show actual overweight Georgia children and include taglines such as “Being fat takes the fun out of being a kid” and “My fat may be funny to you, but it’s killing me.”

The organization also made a point to specifically target parents. One TV spot shows a child looking miserable and asking his mother “Mom, why am I fat?” His equally overweight mother sighs and looks ashamed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysIzX_iDUKs

However, they’ve drawn mixed reactions from both parents and health experts, who have called their effectiveness into question. Many say that the campaign will more likely increase stigmatisation against overweight children and make them feel ashamed of their bodies, rather than encouraging healthy habits.

[Source: ABC News]