Junk Food, Alcohol Often Star in Hit Movies
Posted onThe upshot: 40% of movie beverages were alcoholic, and snacks or sweets accounted for almost one-quarter of the food.
Nearly 94% of movies showed medium or high levels of sugar. Nearly as many (93%) included medium or high levels of fat, and 85% depicted medium or high levels of saturated fat. Medium or high levels of salt (sodium) were found in about half the movies.
The report was published online Nov. 23 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
So the movies fell short of national nutrition guidelines with respect to saturated fat, salt and fiber. And the amount of sugar and alcohol depicted was higher, overall, than real-life Americans actually consume, the investigators found.
“These findings present an opportunity for movie producers to be more mindful of the types of foods and beverages that they depict in movies,” Turnwald said. “It’s about knowing that what is on-screen has the potential to influence tens of millions of viewers, particularly children, and making more of an effort to depict healthier options as the status quo.”
That thought was seconded by Samantha Heller, a registered dietician and senior clinical nutritionist at NYU Langone Health in New York City.
The danger, Heller said, is that