- A study has found that children eat sugary cereals after watching adverts
- One in five children entering primary school is now overweight or obese
- Study found the more adverts they see, the more sugary cereals they eat
Stephen Adams, Health Correspondent For The Mail On Sunday
269
View
comments
Children who watch just 20 television adverts a week for sugary breakfast cereals eat a staggering 30 per cent more of them than children who see none, shocking new research has revealed.
Parents and health experts have long been concerned about the impact of repeated adverts for cereal and other high-sugar foods on youngsters’ eating habits.
Now research has uncovered the startling scale of the relationship between the number of ads seen by youngsters and the amount of the breakfast products they consumed as a result.
Scientists found that for every ten cereal commercials a child under the age of five watched weekly, their consumption of the products jumped by almost 15 per cent.
Health campaigners said the research proved beyond doubt that adverts for sugary breakfast cereals were helping to fuel Britain’s child obesity crisis
And young children viewing 20 cereal adverts per week would consume nearly 30 per cent more of these cereals than those who didn’t watch the commercials.
Health campaigners said the research proved beyond doubt that adverts for sugary breakfast cereals were helping to fuel Britain’s child obesity crisis.
It will also fuel criticism of the Government’s recent decision not to extend the ‘sugar tax’ on fizzy drinks to cover other products. Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum, said last night: ‘We need a sugar tax on cereals and a blanket ban on advertising these products to children.’
Professor Graham MacGregor, chairman of the pressure group Action on Sugar, said: ‘There’s no doubt that sugary cereals are one of the reasons so many children are becoming obese, with some now developing type two diabetes in adolescence.’
And TV chef Jamie Oliver, who lobbied strongly for the sugar tax and is now backing the Sugar Smart campaign aimed at reducing sugar consumption across all ages, said: ‘We’re facing a growing crisis where one in four children are leaving school either overweight or obese, seriously increasing their chances of developing diet-related diseases earlier in adult life.’
Obese mothers, payday lenders and chicken shops: Hogarth’s…
Fancy teas in high street coffee shops are packed with more…
One in five children entering primary school is now overweight or obese, according to official Government figures.
The average child under ten now consumes 14 teaspoons’ worth of sugar daily, according to Public Health England. That’s more than twice the six teaspoons that an adult should limit themselves to daily, under recommendations from the World Health Organisation.
Some cereals are more than a third sugar – meaning a 30g bowl can contain about three teaspoons’ worth.
Among the worst offenders are Kellogg’s Frosties (37 per cent sugar) and Coco Pops (35 per cent). Experts say the latest study proves TV advertising has a powerful effect on children’s eating habits. It was carried out by researchers from the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth University in the US, who found more than 40 per cent of children were exposed to television adverts for high sugar breakfast cereals on a regular basis.
Writing in the journal Appetite, the researchers concluded: ‘These findings support recommendations to limit the marketing of high-sugar foods to young children. Ample evidence suggests cereals most heavily advertised to children are the least nutritious and contain the greatest amounts of added sugars.’
Among the worst offenders are Kellogg’s Frosties (37 per cent sugar) and Coco Pops (35 per cent)
In August, the Government unveiled its long-awaiting childhood obesity strategy. Although it included a ‘sugar tax’ on the soft-drinks industry, it was not extended to other products.
In the UK, food manufacturers are banned from showing adverts for unhealthy foods during children’s television programmes.
But many children still see commercials for sugary foods at other times. A spokesman for the Food and Drink Federation said the sugar tax would make ‘no significant difference’ to the obesity crisis.
He said: ‘Since 2009, the advertising of all products high in fat, salt or sugar has been banned from children’s programmes and the Federation and its members support the extension of that ban to non-broadcast media, including online.
‘The causes of the obesity challenge we face in this country are far more complicated than any single ingredient, food or drink.’
Share or comment on this article
e-mail
Most watched News videos
- Devastating plane crash captured on dashcam camera in Malta
- Incredible bear-hug with not-so-grizzly animal at sanctuary
- Tom Hanks teases Trump over election rigging claims in SNL skit
- Moment McDonald’s staff violently attack ‘racist’ customer
- Mum spits on man after argument breaks out over parking
- Is this the creepy moment the corpse of a girl OPENS her eyes?
- Terrifying moment a massive huntsman spider carries a MOUSE
- Rescue dog finally runs again after an unhappy life in a cage
- EXCLUSIVE: Shocking moment Kumbuka attempts to smash glass
- ‘The Naked Chef’ cooks up tasty chai pudding in his underwear
- In memory of Pete Burns: August 1959 – October 2016
- Mother shaves daughters hair after she ‘bullies cancer girl’
Chaos at Alabama-Texas AM game as 100,000 fans are told not…
From junkie ex-prisoner living on Skid Row to a…
Dead Or Alive singer and Celebrity Big Brother star Pete…
Democratic operative caught on camera: Hillary PERSONALLY…
But where was Drake? President Obama dances to Hotline Bling…
EXCLUSIVE: Threesomes with a married WOMAN and her…
‘These sick animals held her down and kicked and stomped on…
Boycott Ivanka! Women turn on Trump’s DAUGHTER as his…
Miss Bumbum pageant sparks anger after contestants recreate…
The leaning tower of San Francisco: The $350 million luxury…
‘We’ve got some stuff up our sleeve’: Donald Trump’s…
Disgraced Billy Bush to ‘sell his luxury Manhattan…
Comments (269)
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Find out now