Tag Archive for: junk food marketing

Opinion  – Why Your New Years Diet is Doomed

New York Times
The playbook for much of the junk-food marketing is similar to what the tobacco industry used for decades: advertising strategies focused on young people, a shirking of responsibility for poisoning entire populations, and an emphasis on individuals’ responsibility for their own health. Read more

Gaps in regulation of commercial educational websites are exposing children to unhealthy food marketing

News-Medical. net  

A new article, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, asserts that current gaps in the regulation of commercial educational websites are exposing children to unhealthy food marketing. A review of over 500 children’s educational websites found that approximately 60% have ads or unclear policies around advertising. For food companies, this offers an unparalleled opportunity to access children online and to market unhealthy foods. Continue reading 

Online junk food advertising: Could banning it tackle obesity?

BBC Science Focus

Research suggests that an online advert ban will be most beneficial to children whose parents earn the least (and are therefore at increased risk of obesity and other diet-related illnesses), compared to those who earn the most, thus additionally playing a role in reducing socioeconomic health inequalities. Read the article

Are ‘Kidfluencers’ Making Our Kids Fat?

New York Times
Kid influencers are marketing unhealthy food and sugary beverages to children, racking up billions of page views. In a new study in the journal, Pediatrics researchers viewed the top 50 kid influencer videos on YouTube and found that 9 out of 10 featured unhealthy foods. Nearly 1 in 3 promoted a fast-food chain.  Read the article Are ‘Kidfluencers’ Making Our Kids Fat?

Nutrition report card gives Alberta a C grade – again

CBC Edmonton
For the fourth year in a row, Alberta has received a C grade on a report card that evaluates food environments and nutrition policies for young people. The sixth annual report card grades the province’s score across five environments: physical, communication, economic, social and political.  Alberta received A grades in some areas but overall, the report found much room for improvement. The experts gave Alberta an F for failing to reduce household food insecurity and failing to restrict the marketing of unhealthy foods to children. Read the article 

Why we should ban junk-food ads aimed at children 

Washington Post 

Food manufacturers have spent a good part of the past century figuring out how to get kids to convince their parents to spend money, and they’ve gotten very good at it. New York University professor Marion Nestle, who has been following the issue for decades, told me she hears from parents about junk food marketed to children all the time. Read the article here

 

Obesity: Unhealthy ‘buy one get one free’ deals targeted

BBC 

Buy one get one free deals on unhealthy food will be banned as part of the government’s bid to tackle obesity in England. The plan also includes restrictions on where foods high in fat and sugar can be promoted in-store, and new rules for displaying calories on menus. A ban on junk food adverts before 21:00 has been confirmed – for the whole UK. Boris Johnson said the plans would help “reduce our health risks and protect ourselves against coronavirus”.  Read the story here

Stopping ‘buy one get one free’ deals in supermarkets could help tackle obesity, experts say

iNews.co.uk
Dr. Jean Adams, a senior lecturer working at Cambridge University’s Centre for Diet and Activity Research agrees this could “make an impact”. “Less healthy food on different offers are more likely to be on promotion than healthier foods. We also know that promotions work.” There is “no magic bullet,” she makes clear. “We have to think of it as a complicated problem that needs many solutions. And restricting price promotions on less healthy foods could certainly be a sensible part of a wider plan.” Read the article here

 

Obesity costing Western Australia $340 million per year

News. com. au 
Obesity is costing Western Australia’s health system close to $340 million a year, with experts renewing calls for a ban on junk food advertising. A report by WA’s Department of Health finds that health conditions related to excess body mass were responsible for 9.3 per cent of all hospitalizations in 2016. The report projects that by 2026, such hospitalizations will have risen by 54 per cent – and the costs to the health system increased to $610 million – unless the problem is addressed.  Read the article here

See, Like, Share, Remember: Adolescents’ Responses to Unhealthy-, Healthy- and Non-Food Advertising in Social Media

MDPI

Advertisements for unhealthy food evoked significantly more positive responses from adolescents who were more likely to wish to ‘share’ unhealthy posts; rated peers more positively when they had unhealthy posts in their feeds; recalled and recognized a greater number of unhealthy food brands; and viewed unhealthy advertising posts for longer.  Read the study here