Mom Sues McDonald's for Marketing Happy Meals to Kids

A California mom has teamed up with the Center for Science in the Public Interest to sue McDonald's for enticing children with toys, the LA Times reports. McDonald's uses the promise of toys in Happy Meals to lure young children into eating unhealthy food, the lawsuit claims. Young kids lack the ability "to understand the persuasive intent of marketing and advertising," it says.

For Sacramento mother Monet Parham, it came down to getting sick of constant requests for Happy Meals. In particular, her 6- and 2-year-old daughters were fans of Shrek Forever After, and wanted the series of Happy Meal toys associated with the movie. That would mean weekly visits—and lots of fries. "Needless to say, my answer was no," Parham said. "And as usual, pouting ensued and a little bit of a disagreement between us. This doesn't stop with one request. It's truly a litany of requests."
(More McDonald's stories.)