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UK to ban all online junk food advertising to tackle obesity

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The Guardian 
Research has found that one in three children leaving primary school are overweight, or obese, as are almost two-thirds of adults in England. “This would be a world-leading policy to improve children’s health,” said Fran Bernhardt, coordinator of the Children’s Food Campaign. “Online adverts have cast unhealthy food in the starring role for far too long. The current regulations are inadequate to protect children. Companies advertising healthier foods have nothing to fear.” Read the article

Fast food makes an unhealthy comeback among kids

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Web MD 

After a period of improvement, U.S. kids are eating as much fast food as they were in the early 2000s, new government figures show. Researchers found that between 2003 and 2010, there was a decline in U.S. kids’ intake of fast-food calories — dipping from an average of 14% of daily calories, to just under 11%. By 2018, that figure was back up to 14%.  Read the article here

 

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

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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

Childhood Obesity: Research backs case for stricter advertising regulations

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Food Navigator 

Fresh research across Europe suggests children are falling through the gaps of regulations aimed at preventing childhood obesity. Research in Spain and Slovenia shows that even legally binding measures, as they currently stand, are not enough to prevent childhood obesity. Read more here

 

Obesity costing Western Australia $340 million per year

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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

Covid-19 school closings may spur childhood obesity, experts warn

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The Washington Post 

Childhood obesity experts are worrying that children — who often gain weight during the summer when they’re home — will add even more pounds, escalating an already serious public health problem. “Weight gained each summer accumulates year after year since children don’t usually lose it when they return to school,” says Andrew Rundle, who heads the childhood obesity research project within the Columbia (University) Center for Children’s Environmental Health. Read the article here

Coronavirus and obesity: Doctors take aim at food industry over poor diets

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Food Navigator

A cardiologist has blamed the food industry for normalizing ultra-processed junk food as more evidence emerges that obesity is the biggest factor for death from Covid-19 in under 50s according to a new study from the US Center for Disease Control based on 99 countries and 14 states from March. You can read the article here

Teens ‘especially vulnerable’ to junk food advertising, experts say

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ABC News

The inundation of junk food advertising is contributing to the rising rate of teen obesity — a public health crisis among a population that is “especially vulnerable” to the messaging, experts say. In 2016 alone, the food industry spent almost $14 billion on overall advertising to influence Americans’ food choices. The U.S. food system is the second-largest advertiser in the American economy, and views adolescents as a major market force, aggressively targeting them to build brand awareness, preference and loyalty. Read more here

 

Why Britain’s government should prioritise obesity to relieve NHS pressure

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Telegraph UK

An exploration of the enormous economic costs of obesity and some steps that can be taken to ensure health systems do not collapse under the burden of rising obesity-related cancer, diabetes and heart diseases.  Read the article here

Coke, crisps, convenience: how ads created a global junk food generation

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The Guardian

New research claims that blanket exposure to promotional material for unhealthy foods is encouraging children to eat badly around the world. 100 schoolchildren in seven countries were asked by researchers from University College London to film themselves and the food they eat for a study about the exposure of children to unhealthy diets. The accompanying policy-analysis shows that policy responses to address diet-related non-communicable diseases remain largely inadequate with responses anchored around individual behaviour change and personal responsibility.

You can read the article here