List of Headings
- i General points of agreement and disagreement amongst researchers
- ii How much children really know about their food
- iii What forms a healthy diet for children
- iv Advertising's focus on unhealthy options
- v The connection between advertising and children's weight problems
- vi The need for action
- vii Evidence for advertising鈥檚 effect on what children buy to eat
- viii Companies that sell unhealthy foods to children
- ix Underestimating the effects of food promotion
Questions 1-7
Drag a heading into each box.
1. The advertised diet contrasts sharply with that recommended by public health advisors, and themes of fun and fantasy, rather than health and nutrition, are used to promote it to children. Meanwhile, the recommended healthy diet gets little promotional support.
2. In terms of nutritional knowledge, food advertising seems to have little influence on children's general perceptions of what constitutes a healthy diet, but, in certain contexts it does have an effect on more specific types of nutritional knowledge.
3. The review also found examples of how food promotion influences children's food preferences and their purchasing behaviour.
4. A number of studies have attempted to get over this by using the total amount of television viewing as a way of estimating exposure to television advertising. They have established a clear link between television viewing and diet, obesity, and cholesterol levels.
5. Thus the literature does suggest that food promotion is influencing children's diet in a number of ways. This does not amount to proof; as noted above, with this kind of research, incontrovertible proof simply isn't attainable. Nor do studies point to this conclusion; several have not found an effect.
6. Two factors suggest that these findings actually downplay the effect that food promotion has on children.
7. The findings of this first UK systematic review of the research literature are apparent to us but do not amount to definite proof of an effect, but in our view they do provide sufficient evidence to conclude that an effect exists. The debate should now shift to what steps should be taken.