When you get a chance, the next time you're in a grocery store, consciously look at the shelves that are about belt level or below, particularly on the inner aisles.  The candy, cookies, and sugar-filled cereals are not placed there by accident.  They are there because the kids, walking along with Mom or Dad, will see them.  They have great packaging, too.  Lots of bright colors, cartoon characters, etc.

These things have effects on adults, too.  There's an old saying, "Don't go shopping when you're hungry".  In that environment, it's true.  You may be more susceptible to impulse buying if you haven't eaten.  This kind of flies in the face of our ancestry.  Our paleolithic predecessors, of course, didn't go "shopping" to get a huge cart full of food to take back to the family cave.  They didn't have that option.  They had to go after food when they needed it.  In this society, we don't do that.   Hearkening back to previous posts, it's important to remember that we now, in modern times, usually don't have to expend much energy in comparison to the number of calories that we can lay our hands on.  That's why we get fat.  It's really that simple.

When you do your grocery shopping, try staying out of the center aisles in the store.  If you look, most of the stores have a similar set-up.  The outer walls of the store are where you will find, fruit, vegetables, meat, cheese, other dairy products.  The interior is where they keep the cereals, bread, candy, cookies, pasta, canned food, ice cream, baking supplies, etc.

Keep in mind that a great deal of research goes into item placement and packaging.  There are many dedicated professionals, whose purpose in life is to make YOU reach for that package of cookies.  They're good at what they do.  They'll manipulate you, and they will use your kids as pawns in the game.  Don't fall for it.  Take charge of what you feed your family. It's YOUR decision.