Online Food Ads Targeting Kids Promote Unhealthy Foods

NEW HAVEN, Conn.Online advertising targeted at kids may promote unhealthy food choices as most of these food and beverage ads feature products that are high in fat, sugar and/or sodium, according to a recent study published in the journal Pediatric Obesity.

The study, conducted at the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University, revealed that companies place billions of ads for unhealthy foods and beverages on children's websites despite food company pledges to advertise only healthier foods to children. Researchers examined internet exposure data from syndicated sources for the period between July 2009 and June 2010. The data identified popular kids' websites and the food ads children viewed on these websites. Advertisements were classified according to food category and companies' participation in the food industry's self-regulated program, the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI) which consists of 16 U.S. companies that pledged to advertise only healthy dietary choices to children. Findings showed that 3.4 billion food advertisements were viewed on popular kids' websites annually. More than half of these ads appeared on only two Viacom sites, Nick.com and NeoPets.com, and children who visited NeoPets.com viewed on average 30 food ads per month. It was also found that CFBAI companies placed 89% of the food advertisements on children's websites.

Further, three-quarters of the advertisements promoted brands that food companies participating in CFBAI indentified as healthier dietary choices for advertising targeting children, but the products in 84% of those ads have high levels of fat, sugar and/or sodium. About two-thirds of food ads were for sugary breakfast cereals and fast food and surprisingly, foods that were designated by the CFBAI companies as healthier dietary choices for children-direct advertising were less likely to meet nutrition standards proposed by the government compared to other foods advertised to children. To address limitations of the CFBAI, the U.S. Congress commissioned an Interagency Working Group on Food Marketed to Children (IWG) with representatives from four government agencies to develop more effective guidelines for responsible food marketing to children.

"As previous studies of television advertising to children have shown, our findings demonstrate that CFBAI self-regulatory pledges do not protect children from advertising of nutritionally poor foods on children's websites," said Jennifer Harris, the Rudd Center director of marketing initiatives. Other studies have show that unhealthy food ads targeting children are especially dominate on Spanish-language television. Also, children who spend a significant amount of time watching television and who are exposed to TV advertisements have increases consumption of sweetened beverages.