Supermarket Promotions Lead to Unhealthy Eating

Advertising comes to the public in many forms. Supermarkets and chain food stores advertise a great deal using coupons and/or promotions of junk food items. Statistics would support that coupon cutters are on the rise; some using them to obtain an ungodly number of products at little or no cost. The problem is that many items on their coupon list(s) may save them money, the buyer is also more likely not to stick to the list and purchase items that may be damaging to their health; junk food, and therefore spend money on unnecessary items. 

My reasoning behind this is that the United States and Australia are on the verge of an obesity epidemic and a great number of people shop ‘off the cuff’ instead of from a list. In an article “How We Get Sucked in by Junk Food Specials” (2016) it states that “…three in five people (60%) were likely to buy unhealthy food and drinks when they were on sale or promotion” (para. 3). I understand that sales and marketing departments are under pressure to ensure that sales for the store bring about maximum profit. However, at what cost or level of morality are those departments willing to ‘stoop’ to in order to achieve profitability. It is my opinion that human nature goes for what is ‘flashy’ or ‘spectacular’ when making a purchase without seriously considering the long-term health outcomes of spontaneous purchases. Supermarkets are very likely to promote, advertise, and discount products that are of poor quality, do not provide proper nutrients and are discounted as junk foods.

I do not believe that there are means of changing what supermarkets promote since they are abiding by the laws of commerce. It is sad, however, that owners of these markets do not promote human health as a part of their ad campaigns. The supermarkets advertise what is cheap, and people buy what is cheap. In the end, it is up to me and every other individual to take stock in their health, read labels and look for nutritional value in a product, minimize the junk food intake, and generate a food list or recipe list; then stick to that list. In doing so, junk food is minimized.

Reference

How we get sucked in by junk food specials. (2016). The Conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/how-we-get-sucked-in-by-junk-food-specials-in-supermarkets-66392.