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I was shopping for new toys for my 2 year old granddaughters the other day and was totally dumbfounded by the pick of unhealthy baby toys readily available for our children. I was so disgusted by the vast selection of unhealthy baby toys I felt I needed to vent here, both for myself and for those of you who want to leave comments at the end of the column.

It's bad enough that we adults are bombarded on a day to day basis with sneaky advertising strategies meant to brainwash and instigate hyper-consumerist tendencies, but some of the ploys meant to hook kids through their toys is just plain wrong! We as adults can at the very least spot the rouse. We might still partake, but at the very least we have the judgment making skills and (for the most part) the aptitude to decipher when we are being catered to for our betterment or our disadvantage. Our children simply don't have that facility; which is why it is up to us to cut out the damaging child toys.

One flagrant example was the McDonald's McKids toy line. Inside the french fry and burger cases, the backpack, and the kitchen setup were several dozen mini milkshakes, burgers, fries, and cookies. I can't blame the McDonald's corporation for attempting to make a profit and let's be factual, they would not sell these toys if someone didn't buy them; but we have to understand that this is how our little ones recognize the logo and affiliate the golden arches with enjoyment at a very young age. This kind of brand recognition marketing will maintain the obesity rate at a steady increase until we as role models take matters into our own hands and start to say no to unhealthy child's toys.

I also saw a donut shop toy set...yup, donuts. Let's face it, any child who knows custard filled donuts and iced mocha before they even see the inside of the shop is destined for cavities and diabetes... and that's the most positive scenario.

Like I said, I shouldn't blame these billion dollar businesses for doing what they do best. We already know what they're all about. We know that for the most part they are cold, methodical, profit machines that will do whatever is required to ensure their fiscal well-being. Building unhealthy habits in our children only helps their future bottom line.

It is up to us to educate our children so that these marketing firms that are successfully initiating brand recognition at such an early age do not continue to encourage the unhealthy baby habits that feed into the childhood obesity epidemic through unhealthy toys for our children and babies. They will continue to fabricate and market these toys to our babies, but we need to try to remember that the authority is always in our hands to say NO!

We can stop purchasing these unhealthy toys for our babies and help our children form healthy habits; or we can continue down the same path. Let our kids be influenced by people who don't care about them or their well-being. Allow them to be yet another unhealthy statistics in an increasingly unhealthy society. Or we can do what is right instead of what is easy. We can value our kids by valuing what we buy for them. We can keep our integrity by giving our children a fighting chance against the illness and dysfunction both instigated and ignored by the fast food industry. Either way, it all begins by what we choose to surround our kids with.

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