Impact of food ads on children’s diet

Because younger children do not understand persuasive intent in advertising, they are easy target for commercial persuasion. Children are becoming consumers at younger ages and a variety of influences and experiences shape their consumer habits. Advertisers spent 100s of bilions of dollars a year worldwide encouraging, persuading and manipulating people into a consumer lifestyle. Advertisements today are not so much about the products but rather about the character of the consumers and how they should feel when they use or possess the advertised product. Messages to children are all about the happiness, social status or success which accompany the possession or consumption of a certain toy or type of food. Young children are increasing the target of advertising because of the amount of money they spend themselves, the influence they have on their parents spending and because of the money they will spend in the future when they grow up. Children require special consideration and protection with respect to advertising. Advertising of high calorie, energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods [foods high in fat, sugar and /or salt] should be restricted during television programming commonly viewed by significant numbers of children. Advertising regulations should take account of the age of the likely child audience, with younger children requiring greater protection