How Happy do Meal Toy Bans Make You?

In November, San Francisco supervisors outlawed the practice of handing out toys in some fast food kids’ meals.

Now New York may be following suit, with the introduction of a similar bill by a councilman who told the New York Times he was motivated to write out of guilt he feels for feeding his own children Happy Meals.

Most people wouldn’t argue that there’s been a rise in childhood obesity (The number of adolescents who are obese has tripled since 1980 and it's more than doubled in younger children, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) and that that’s not a good thing. Most would agree something should probably be done about it. But there are a lot of differing opinions out there about what should be done and who should do it.

We want to hear your opinions. Is the government overstepping bounds and inappropriately taking away freedoms from businesses and individuals? Or is it the government’s place to step in, even on personal levels such as what someone eats, when parents don’t? Does the problem really lie with Happy Meals and other fast food deals aimed at kids? Or is the legislation simply putting a Band-Aid on a bigger problem? As a parent, do you feel your role is in some way being supplanted?

Let’s have a talk about it. Weigh in (pun intended) in the comment section below.