Through recent years, McDonald's is attempting to provide healthier food options for kids by adding fruits, milk and a fitness tracker to its Happy Meals. While the prospective end result is good; unfortunately, the efforts did not translate too well with the children.
Los Angeles Times reports that the fastfood giant is retracting all fitness trackers called the Step It Activity Band that would be removed from Happy Meals in the U.S. and Canada. This is because, according to McDonald's, they have received word that the toy device may lead to skin irritation.
Another problem is that kids treated the fitness tracker as a toy to play around with, rather than as a tool to watch their health. This, according to Partner and Executive Director of Sullivan, Nicole Ferry, gives a sense of a "little less of a serious commitment."
As per Wall Street Journal, the fitness tracker is supposedly not only to target children but also their parents. It's for Mom or Dad to not feel bad about feeding their kid junk food, rather than healthy food. Also, kids love to copy their parents and seeing them with their Apple Watches and Fidbits makes kids want to have their own.
According to CNN, the fitness trackers came in six bright colors. It was planned to be out in the U.S. and Canada markets for four weeks. It's a pedometer that measures steps and blinks at the same speed rate of the person walking with it.
CNN further reports that McDonald's aim was to seemingly promote physical activities among children. While it did help kids be more active, the enthusiasm lasts shortly and would then die, leading the kid crawling back to his/her old unhealthy lifestyle.
Do you like eating at McDonald's? Do you think it's possible that the fast food chain go to a healthier route while maintaining its established brand? Sound off your thoughts in the Comments section and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates.
