New Wendy's Commercial & Food Rewards

sugarlemonpie

You guys are bringing up a lot of great angles. I guess from my personal struggles with food rewards starting as a kid, I took it at that as opposed to just face value "sad kid, don't worry you're still worth something, cheer up". I'm not playing the blame game, my weight is my responsibility, was just curious what everyone thinks. I don't even eat at Wendy's, I have nothing against them.

Do I think people are bad parents because they treat their children occasionally? Not at all! I think that's up to your judgement as a parents and what you think is healthy and acceptable for your kid.

For me at my age, and as a kid, i think there were healthier options as rewards and for uplifting spirits. A new CD, TY beanie baby, Pokemon cards, etc. Now I reward myself with new clothes, a bath, etc. (Funny how that got more expensive with age.)

But, end game: I understand Wendy's ad and their motive behind it. It's a cute commercial. Kids are smarter than you think, they know what they want, and a treat on occasion is fine!

juggernaut1974

You are welcome.

Beat me to it

brower47

i never really had any "food rewards" because id just be looking for constant excuses to reward myself. before cutting back i would just eat whatever whenever i wanted, and now moderation is my friend.

i think any commercials directed at children are pretty devilish and whoever checks over commercials to approve them for tv should be alot stricter with them. the impressionability of children is so large that its really just taking advantage, and parents are getting less and less strict themselves on what children are allowed to do or say, it seems that the kids are running most households nowadays. its comparable to tobacco companies who used to target children for their cigarette commercials honestly, which the goal was to hook them when they are young

First bolded: I don't want some government bureaucrat acting as food morality police for business advertizing. It's a band aid that wouldn't do anything to fix the underlying problem which is knowledge and adherence to nutritional principles (or bad parenting if a parent can't say "no" to their children).

Second bolded: Tobacco targeting children when the substance they are peddling had been proven to be a human carcinogen isn't even in the same ballpark as a Wendy's frosty.

I agree with you Brower47, expecially the part I bolded in your words. Blame the advertising or the company...because parents' can't say no or anything....seems legit.

i never said to blame the advertising company, and any parent who cant say no to their kid is clearly unfit, all i was referring to is that kids are extremely impressionable, if they see a commercial that has some sort of reward system impregnated in it, they are more likely to follow that system than if they had not seen said commercial, no?

comparing it to tobacco was an extreme comparison ill admit, but its not far off

The bolded bit seems like a bit of an oxymoron to me.

As for the first part: I saw all kinds of commercials as a kid showing how cool smoking was. It was depicted in movies as a cool thing to do but guess what? All it took was for my parents to explain to me a few times how absolutely stupid it would be to smoke. They explained that movies are not reality long before that and explained that commercials would say or do anything to make a product look more appealing and they made it clear that they were not going to buy me something just because I saw something cool or delicious in a commercial.

Kids don't live in a TV vacuum where the only influence is what they see on it. There are far more powerful influences, parents being a main one, that can override any silly 20 second TV spot.

your right that is an oxymoron lol i just mean it engraved bad habits in their brain, but tobacco is a much worse bad habit

i agree that there are stronger influences, but not all parents have the sense or the knowledge to have that talk with their kids, and not all kids have the sense to listen to their parents during that talk

So your fix to bad parenting and kids not listening is government intervention? I think we aren't going to ever agree on this due to some very fundamental differences in thinking. Good back and forth though. :flowerforyou:

DeltaZero

Just need that with some crumbled bacon on top!

bcattoes

What do you think? Did you or do you still struggle with the 'food reward'? Should they be portraying that in advertisements directed at children?

I think the commercial is horrible! But that's because I find that new red-headed Wendy's spokesperson ultra-annoying.

No, I have never struggled with food rewards.

As to whether it should be directed at children, I think not. I don't think we should encourage children to expect a reward for losing.

skullshank

God damn I want a frosty.

hold my hair back, bro....im goin in!

MyChocolateDiet

I think "not getting hit" with the ball was it's own reward and did not require a frosty.

This ad sounds like it had too many people involved in the making of it and it' lost it's intent and storyline...but at least they got that Frosty in there and Wheird now wants one, so ....mission complete.

I'm mostly just posting in here to see who follows me in and to see if they take any parenting hints from here whatsoever or just in any way get reminded that they have children. Who need their attention.

teresamwhite

i think that's the point of a treat or a reward...it's something done out of the ordinary or in response to something out of the ordinary. My kids don't get dessert very often...it's usually a treat or a reward...not unlike some of the junk TV i don't normally let them watch either. They know it's a treat, because they recognize my power of veto over just about every aspect of their lives...

(Before I hit "Post Reply"...I am the meanest mother in the entire world...my kids said so!)

DeltaZero

MyChocolateDiet

God damn I want a frosty.

hold my hair back, bro....im goin in!

this would have made a better commercial b/c now I want one. or a thousand.

bcattoes

Fair warning - I'm somewhat cynical by nature...

My opinion - anyone who can be manipulated so much by a 30 second advertisement that they KNOW GOING IN is designed to get them to do/not do something probably isn't going to make the best decisions regardless.

I'm all for more honest advertisements, more family friendly tv/music, etc (how very old-fashioned of me); yet I also think people need to stop blaming commercials, TV, video games, movies, music, etc for all the ills of society.

ETA: to directly answer the question - I have no problem with the concept of a "food reward". I often treat my girls to ice cream or a frosty or something. But I also often say "no"...and that is one skill I think some parents today sorely lack.

I agree!!

We all know fast food isn't good for us, yet we still CHOOSE to eat there. We need to stop blaming them and start taking responsibility.

We don't all choose to eat fast food.

MyChocolateDiet

I never had any issues with food rewards for my sons. As their mother, I ruled the house and my word was law. I felt it was my responsibility and duty to teach my children nutrition, healthy food choices, and limits despite commercial advertisements.

No_Finish_Line

Was on Youtube and saw the new commercial Wendy's has about a kid who was disappointed about her performance at her baseball game. So to cheer her up, they got a Wendy's frosty cone because they're celebrating that she didn't get hit with the ball.

Now this isn't a horrible ad or anything, but the thought to me was a lot of us struggle with 'food rewards' and getting over that mentality that "I deserve this piece of cake because of xyz". Then it snowballs that you can make up any sort of reason to reward yourself or cheat on your diet. "Well I walked for 2 minutes to my car in the parking garage, so I can have this brownie sundae". Or "Well I made my to do list, now to give myself a treat..."

What do you think? Did you or do you still struggle with the 'food reward'? Should they be portraying that in advertisements directed at children?

i think the notion of punishing a child, or simply implying that they are 'not a good boy' if they do not finish everything on thier plate is potentially more harmful... altho there are many good, legitimate reasons why parents will do this.

right or wrong food will always have a social (celebration, etc.) component. to ignore it will not instill healthy habbits. to embrace it an not over do it would.

MyChocolateDiet

It's not a "reward," it's a salve for a bruised ego, but I see what you're getting at.

I have no issues with it. Does the commercial show them taking her there every day? No.

that would be a long commercial.

funfang

We don't usually eat ice cream, cake or cookies in our house. Those are not "necessary" food. But we do eat them once a while and enjoy them as specially treat. We should be able to enjoy food just need to know how to make the right choice. I think it's up to us parents to teach our kids how to choce the right food. I have no problem to use food as reward for our kids.

By the way, we don't go to fast food restaurant, my kids have never been to Wendy's, burger kids or McDonald's. I try to make our own food or go to places that make their food with better ingredients.

weird_me2

You guys are bringing up a lot of great angles. I guess from my personal struggles with food rewards starting as a kid, I took it at that as opposed to just face value "sad kid, don't worry you're still worth something, cheer up". I'm not playing the blame game, my weight is my responsibility, was just curious what everyone thinks. I don't even eat at Wendy's, I have nothing against them.

Do I think people are bad parents because they treat their children occasionally? Not at all! I think that's up to your judgement as a parents and what you think is healthy and acceptable for your kid.

For me at my age, and as a kid, i think there were healthier options as rewards and for uplifting spirits. A new CD, TY beanie baby, Pokemon cards, etc. Now I reward myself with new clothes, a bath, etc. (Funny how that got more expensive with age.)

But, end game: I understand Wendy's ad and their motive behind it. It's a cute commercial. Kids are smarter than you think, they know what they want, and a treat on occasion is fine!

I don't think there's anything wrong with food as a reward when done in moderation. I think the problem happens when we start using food for everything or even just rewarding everything. It sounds like your parents regularly rewarded you with food and now you reward yourself with material things. The act of constantly getting rewards generally leads to constantly feeling deserving of rewards, no matter what the rewards are.

When I was younger, my mom never really gave me rewards for anything. I got rewarded by the local taco place and movie rental place for A's on my report cards, but that didn't start happening until I was in high school. Now, as an adult I don't feel the need to set rewards for making my goals. If I have something I want, I make room for it based on my budget, whether it's food or material items.

We do occasionally do food or other rewards or comforts for our children, but we just as often tell them not this time. We also don't save "treats " just for rewards, sometimes we have them just because. I think that it's part of learning the all things in moderation approach.

MyChocolateDiet

i never really had any "food rewards" because id just be looking for constant excuses to reward myself. before cutting back i would just eat whatever whenever i wanted, and now moderation is my friend.

i think any commercials directed at children are pretty devilish and whoever checks over commercials to approve them for tv should be alot stricter with them. the impressionability of children is so large that its really just taking advantage, and parents are getting less and less strict themselves on what children are allowed to do or say, it seems that the kids are running most households nowadays. its comparable to tobacco companies who used to target children for their cigarette commercials honestly, which the goal was to hook them when they are young

First bolded: I don't want some government bureaucrat acting as food morality police for business advertizing. It's a band aid that wouldn't do anything to fix the underlying problem which is knowledge and adherence to nutritional principles (or bad parenting if a parent can't say "no" to their children).

Second bolded: Tobacco targeting children when the substance they are peddling had been proven to be a human carcinogen isn't even in the same ballpark as a Wendy's frosty.

I agree with you Brower47, expecially the part I bolded in your words. Blame the advertising or the company...because parents' can't say no or anything....seems legit.

i never said to blame the advertising company, and any parent who cant say no to their kid is clearly unfit, all i was referring to is that kids are extremely impressionable, if they see a commercial that has some sort of reward system impregnated in it, they are more likely to follow that system than if they had not seen said commercial, no?

comparing it to tobacco was an extreme comparison ill admit, but its not far off

The bolded bit seems like a bit of an oxymoron to me.

As for the first part: I saw all kinds of commercials as a kid showing how cool smoking was. It was depicted in movies as a cool thing to do but guess what? All it took was for my parents to explain to me a few times how absolutely stupid it would be to smoke. They explained that movies are not reality long before that and explained that commercials would say or do anything to make a product look more appealing and they made it clear that they were not going to buy me something just because I saw something cool or delicious in a commercial.

Kids don't live in a TV vacuum where the only influence is what they see on it. There are far more powerful influences, parents being a main one, that can override any silly 20 second TV spot.

Yes, but in order for kids to be influenced by their parents they actually have to spend time with them and cannot let themselves be distracted. Otherwise kids can be left in a vacuum while their parents fiddle with technology too much and they find their own way and ideas with TV an internet and there are some pretty bad trends out there. There are kids doing thing today that in the past were unheard of and then parents just rather than face and deal with it just bury their heads more and find solace in geographicaly distant relationships when the one's in their homes suffer.

Long story short, the commercials have more power than they used to depending on who's doing the parenting.

MizTerry

There are only two foods that come close to making you feel as good as an orgasm.


Ice cream.


Bacon.




I think we are done here?

Honey, there is NOTHING as good as the big O. Nothing.

yo_andi

I'm mostly just posting in here to see who follows me in and to see if they take any parenting hints from here whatsoever or just in any way get reminded that they have children. Who need their attention.

+1

parkscs

I was more horrified to discover that you don't use AdBlock when watching YouTube... for shame. As for "food as a reward"... why not? I frequently reward myself/family/friends by going out for nice dinners, and when I do, I make it fit into my dietary goals.