Children exposed to fewer TV ads for sweets, beverages but more for fast food

**Powell LM. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2010;doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2010.139.**

Children were exposed to fewer television advertisements for sweets and sugar-sweetened beverages in 2007 compared with 2003. However, children now see more fast-food advertisements, and racial gaps in exposure to all food advertising have increased, according to new research.

“The study showed a number of positive changes in exposure to food advertising between 2003 and 2007 seen by children,” Lisa Powell, PhD, research professor in the department of economics and senior research scientist at the Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois, Chicago, told Infectious Diseases in Children.

“However, children and teens are being exposed to an increasing number of fast-food advertisements, particularly black children and youths.”

Data were generated from Nielsen Media Research, which assessed total annual exposure to food advertising in 2003, 2005 and 2007.

Between 2003 and 2007, daily exposure to food advertising decreased by 13.7% in children aged 2 to 5 years and by 3.7% among those aged 6 to 11 years. Exposure increased by 3.7% among adolescents aged 12 to 17 years.

Specifically, exposure to advertisements for sweets decreased in all age groups between 2003 and 2007 (2 to 5 years, –41%; 6 to 11 years, –29%; 12 to 17 years, –12%). Similarly, exposure to sugar-sweetened beverage advertisements decreased between 27% and 30% in all age groups.

Racial gaps in advertising over time increased as well.

“In particular, black children and teens had more than double the rate of increase in exposure to fast-food ads compared to their white counterparts,” Powell and colleagues wrote.

Exposure to fast-food advertisements increased in all age groups (2 to 5 years, 5%; 6 to 11 years, 12%; 12 to 17 years, 20%).

“Physicians should continue to encourage parents to limit their children's television viewing time and not necessarily replace it with other media — replacing it with physical activity or reading would be best,” Powell said. – by Matthew Brannon

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