Children and The Media-Unhealthy Marketing

The hot topic within childrens media is the rise in child obesity and unhealthy eating habits caused by the alarming number of unhealthy food and drink ads on television. These aren't just any food and drink ads they are foods that are ranked as the poorest nutritional quality which have been attributed to the rise in child obesity. These advertisements have a huge impact on the choices of food children select after watching television.

A new study - "The Impact of Industry Self-Regulation on the Nutritional Quality of Foods Advertised on Television to Children" by Dale Kunkel, a professor of communication at the University of Arizona, and UA graduate students, will be presented tomorrow at the Federal Trade Commission in Washington. The initiative includes some of the largest food conglomerates that make up two thirds of the industry's ad budget, and the goal is to improve the nutritional quality of food found in advertisements that are directly targeted to children.

Findings :

• 72.5 percent, of the foods advertised on television to children are for products in the poorest nutritional category.
• Healthy foods such as vegetables and fruits account for only 1% of all food advertising to children.
• To view 1 healthy food ad, it requires 10 hours of television on a children's programs.
• 49 percent of all food ads with licensed characters, such as Sponge Bob Square Pants, promote foods in the poorest nutritional category.

The overall message is that we should place more emphasis on increasing the number of healthy food ads that children view so they influenced to make better eating choices and thereby contributing to the decrease in child obesity.

Read the full article "Report Says Children Are Still Bombarded With Television Ads For Unhealthy Food Choices" published by Medical News Today (December 17, 2009).

Summary by NutritionJunkie (Source: Medical News Today)