I almost didn’t do this video.
I honestly thought it would be too wacky and out of the box for some readers to handle.
My change of heart occurred when one of my children said, “Mom, you HAVE to do that video”.
Out of the mouths of babes.
So here I am posting a video about the best trick I know for teaching your kids about the dangers of fast food and hopefully keeping them far far away from it forever – even once they are out of the house and making their own decisions.
While this trick won’t work for older children, if your kids are still quite young, it should work well.  My three kids want absolutely nothing to do with fast food and that includes my teenager who has more freedom away from his parents and has the opportunity to indulge if he chose to.
So here it is.   What do you think? Too wacky or totally on target?
Mom Versus Fast Food (Mom Wins)
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Ha! I never thought of actually going through the drive through to get the toy and trash the food. That is hilarious. My kids have all learned the same lesson, just by my mentioning it when we pass golden arches, etc. I also don’t try to tell them it tastes bad, just that it will make them feel bad. If you ask my kids what they think of fast food, they will say “Disgusting!” I sometimes offer to take them there (in jest) and the whole van swells in protest. 🙂 I highly doubt mine, just like yours, would be running to the nearest Wendy’s when they have some freedom!
Wow! And YES! Great video.
I LOVE this. We have the same approach with our children, too. I have never bought a meal and thrown it away, but we talk about how, yes, it does taste “good”, but NO it’s not good for your body and it will make you sick if you eat too much of it. It doesn’t help your muscles, it gives you fat. My son knows this, he’s 5, and completely accepts it.
How neat, this video takes our lesson to the next level, thanks!!
You are still supporting a business that encourages kids to eat garbage. I don’t think I could buy “food” just to throw it away. The toys are JUNK, the value of the toy is probably .20.
Why not have a secret mommy prizes stashed away and make your own “happy meal”?
That approach doesn’t deal with the reality that fast food messages are everywhere programming our children to want this junk. And, their friends are eating it constantly which adds peer pressure to the mix. We Moms have to get tougher about fast food and deal with the issue head on. Giving healthy alternatives is wonderful and should be done anyway but is too soft touch in this age where the industrial food giants are AGGRESSIVELY competing for our children’s appetites. I am hardly supporting McDonalds by spending $3.63 and throwing their pseudo food in the trash where it belongs.
If you make it just forbidden, than your kids when they leave the nests will rebel. They will tell you what you want to hear as kids. But it will not surprise me if your children go for the fast food, pizza and r amen when they go off to college. I rather teach moderation over elimination. My son gets a happy meal maybe once every six months. Because he knows that it is not meant to be eaten on a daily or weekly basis. We eat as healthy as our budget allows, but not everyone has the privilege, yes the privilege to eat from local grass fed cows. I try to buy local produce as much as possible. I thought you came off very judgmental and condescending and I will say hypocritical. If you believe that these corporations are bad..then I would not give them one cent of my money. Telling a child no should be sufficient at a young age, no need for long winded explanations. As far as throwing the food away.. I have mixed reactions. I can understand that you consider it garbage. But to a homeless person who has not eaten in days, that meal would have been a Godsend. I know what it is like to struggle and not eat because I cannot afford it. Thankfully i have not been homeless,but I think that meal would have been better off used, instead of in the trash. I take what I can from your blog and use it, just like other health orientated sites. But the only people I see who can follow it to the letter, are those women who stay at home, because husband makes a good income. It does not compute with most of us who have to live in the real world. If the worst thing I ever do as a parent is not feed my child an expensive organic diet..then I will be fine and so will my child. I do agree with you about the crock of crap that has become the everyday standard American diet. I understand the need for a balance of meat, vegetables and fruits in our diet. I understand that not all fat is bad and in some case needed, especially for children. But I take a moderate approach, rather than extreme elimination.
Not true and just an excuse … my 15 year old and I were just talking about this today. He has ALWAYS refused McDonalds and all fast food even now when he has quite a bit of freedom away from me and can choose when he is with his fast food eating friends. Good habits formed young do indeed stick.
I think you may have missed the point.
Ooooops… I don’t know how I made this mistake. The comment was suppose to be in response to the person who said you shouldn’t buy food to throw it away. Sorry!
I agree with Kimara. Why even go to any fast food places and spend the money on a crappy, chinese toy? And yes, you did still support the industrial food giant…you bought the food! That’s $ 3.63 you could have used to feed your kids something good! You wasted the money for a cheap chinese toy…Maybe you should also throw the toy away and teach the kids about buying goods made in the USA?
she says why she does this…. shes taking some spare change once in a blue moon to plant the seed that the food giants are bad.. they have “hooks in the water” everywhere trying to bait our children at every turn.. bottom line is the industry is very creative in trying to lure our children away, parents will have to be just as crafty in trying to keep them on the right path.. not a bad price at all for a lifetime of healthy choices.. im all for it.. i would actually go one step more and take my kids in to use the restroom just so they can look around at the health of the people who are eating the food there.. i know i’ll catch some negative feedback about this one.. its not teaching my children to judge or make fun of anyone, it teaches them what poor food choices will do to their health..
-jason and lisa-
I agree jason and lisa, How long would these fast food places survive if everyone only spent $3.63, twice?
Yes, you’re buying the food, and giving McD’s a whopping great $3.63… but in the BIG picture, if it puts your kids off this junk for life, so they’re not tempted to buy it as teens or adults, then you are depriving McD’s of potentially hundreds of dollars (or more!) of revenue over the years. Yes, either is a drop in the bucket for a huge corporation like that, granted. But if more people do it, and more kids learn the lesson, over time it sends a powerful message!
Our subconscious memories are what controls 90% of what we do in life. Most of those memories are formed in our younger years. Every event that happens in childhood forms the belief system of that child, which stays with them, even if they don’t realize it. That is why it is important to actually buy the happy meal, and throw it away. This is a very good way to create subconscious memories of “fast food is bad”. Just telling kids it’s bad probably won’t stick. Actions speak louder than words. A life lesson for under $4.00? Plus, you aren’t really helping McDonalds by buying the happy meal, because they have now lost a customer they might have had for life. I think those of you who think you shouldn’t give McDonalds money… you missed the point! I love this idea, and will use it when I have kids.
I wholeheartedly agree that buying this a few times to throw it out is a GOOD idea. The point is…your kid will NEVER eat it. I know from firsthand experiences with three different kids this… My oldest (11) was around when I still made poor food choices. And my middle child (5) was around when all I did was say “we don’t eat these thing they are bad for you!” …I struggle with them. The oldest child will eat the junk whenever she is on her own because I’m not there to remind. The 5 year old hasn’t had a happy meal since she was TWO and STILL ASKS AND BEGS FOR THEM. the baby? (11mths) I will never give him one. I will do this. Because if I don’t…they’ll be all be keeping these places in business when they get older. So yes. Worth it. ….also here’s something that can be done with older kids that are new to eating the right foods: make a hamburger or cheeseburger or even chicken nuggets with REAL ingredients. And buy the equivalent from a fast food place. Put them out somewhere. Even in separate brown paper bags. And let them sit untouched. I did this a few weeks ago. When I showed my older kids what happened…the real food? Moldy, decomposing, horrible smell. The McDonald’s? Looked EXACTLY the same. They were horrified. “why isn’t the fast food rotting mom????????” when I explained that’s what the preservatives and laboratory made ingredients do and asked if that’s what they wanted to eat? The answer was NO. And since, my oldest, went to the movies…she came home with an unsweetened tea and told me she passed on all of the movie theatre food “it just didn’t look good” So maybe I’m finally getting somewhere with her?
lol!! Wow. My three year old just watched that open-mouthed. When I quizzed him, he told me that the food was not good and would make him sick. Just from what he saw in your video. Then he told me that Burger King would make him grow big and strong. Oh dear! Looks like I have some work to do.
LOL Holly, definately a bit more work to be done! This video and your hilarious comment have made my day 🙂
I once overheard a kid (about 11 or 12) tell his friend, “My grades went up when I stopped eating McDonalds!”.
Time to throw out a Burger King child’s meal in front of your 3 year old Holly 🙂 LOL
love this video!!! I am trying this soon. Thanks so much for the tip. You are AWESOME 🙂
Kaley, your kids are the perfect age to do this. They will never forget it … my kids suggested doing this video as they remembered so strongly Mom throwing the Happy Meal in the trash stunt when they were little 🙂
Love it. Lesson Learned!
Exactly … all the naysayers here are forgetting a very important point:
IT WORKED!
Throwing away 2-3 Happy Meals to keep your kids off fast food for life is a no brainer thing to do. And calling this wasteful because of starving kids is ridiculous. This stuff isn’t even food anyway .. it’s an addictive drug (MSG is addictive) that once kids get when they are little, they can’t get off of ever except with extreme effort that most will not have. in them to do when they are older. Best to prevent the whole thing from the start.
$3.63 – gesh — thinking of the things I could cook at home for that cost that would be MUCH better!
Great video! Some may see it as extreme, but what’s extreme is what those meals truly consist of!
BTW, jealous you are wearing a tank-top! I am Dying for that weather right now!
LOve the video. lol We totally lost the taste for fast food after watching Super Size Me. YUCK< YUCK, YUCK.
We discovered that McD's and others will let you just purchase the toy alone and not have to take the food.
Yes, you can do that but the lesson part as shown on the video is lost 🙂
Moms have to be proactive about keeping their kids off fast food. People are shocked when I tell them my kids have never had a Happy Meal, but I don’t think it’s such a big deal. It’s only a decision after all to never take your kids there and to teach them that stuff is not really even food. It’s better for your kids to skip a meal and go hungry than eat fast food and that’s the honest to goodness truth.
People think that it is a big deal that your children haven’t had a happy meal. What you should ask them in return is what healthy foods there children will eat. Many children have not tasted much more than an apple or a couple of grapes when it comes to fruit. Parents don’t even try to get their children to eat healthy.
I applaud your efforts.
Loved the video. I have been teaching my two little boys since they were babes ( now 5 & 4 yrs old) that fast food is garbage. Actually the word I used was poison. When my hubby had them out and about for the day and tried to stop at McD’s they cried because they didn’t want to eat it. When we go to pick up a few items from our local food store they will show me a label and ask if it has poison in it or can we buy it. Other shoppers who here them always laugh. You have to start when there small. So you are right on with this one. Thanks for such a wonderful informative blog!
Wow! That just made my day!