Over the past few decades, fast food restaurants have grown exponentially and spread across the world. Americans have always appreciated delicate foods that can be prepared in minutes at an affordable price. Fast food restaurants are present everywhere, near a school or even inside a school. Almost all television commercials feature the products of many fast food restaurants and are also advertised on the Internet. Fast food companies are targeting young adults and catering more consistently to children. Fast food restaurants' marketing tactics toward children should be regulated or banned because the promise of toys in a meal encourages children to eat the company's unhealthy foods. Children have always shown a penchant for toys and always want more varieties. McAlister and Cornwell assert that “marketing practices targeting children are at the center of much debate” (195). Fast food restaurants use toy marketing to attract the attention of children and then attract the attention of their parents to take them to buy a meal with a toy. Santa Clara County, California, "voted to ban the practice of pairing toys with high-calorie meals intended for children, while allowing toys to be paired with meals meeting certain nutritional guidelines" (McAlister and Cornwell 195). If the majority of America voted to pass a law like Santa Clara County's, the rate of childhood obesity would decrease significantly. Today, fast food advertisements are getting out of control as they present the food product as healthy or display a positive message with a bonus toy. The largest fast food company in the world is McDonald's and they use all types of marketing techniques to target children to buy their food. One of ...... middle of paper ......y has become a predominant problem in today's society and especially among young children. Precautions must be taken to ensure the health of children and future generations. Restrictions or bans should be imposed to limit advertising aimed at children, as they are lured into eating foods that are not healthy and overtime can deteriorate a person's health. Parents should also teach their children to eat healthily or not to eat fast food excessively. Foods are going to get bigger and cheaper in the future and precautions need to be taken immediately. Many countries have also become aware of the consequences that fast food has on children and some countries have started to ban or restrict advertising aimed at children. There are many health risks associated with obesity and all of them can be avoided if you eat healthily or don't eat too much fast food..