Rudd Center Examines Food and Beverage TV Advertising to Children

The University of Connecticut’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity has released a study on TV food advertising viewed by preschoolers, children and adolescents, claiming that “food advertising exposure increased with age for both black and white youth, but black youth viewed approximately 50% or more ads than did white youth of the same age.” F. Fleming-Milici and J. L. Harris, “Television food advertising viewed by preschoolers, children and adolescents: contributors to differences in exposure for black and white youth in the United States,” Pediatric Obesity, December 2016. Based on Nielsen panel data gathered between 2008 and 2012, the study reports that “increases in food-ads-per-hour increased exposure for all youth,” but that greater TV viewing and higher rates of advertising “on youth- and black-targeted networks both contributed to black youth’s greater exposure.”

“Four product categories contributed almost 60% of food ads viewed by all youth in 2012: breakfast cereals, candy, fast-food and other restaurants,” notes the study authors. “Nearly one quarter of these ads promoted fast-food restaurants, with white youth viewing two to four fast food ads per-day and black youth viewing four to six ads per-day. Although black youth viewed more ads than white youth viewed in every food and beverage category, the proportion of food ads viewed differed significantly for only two categories: candy represented a significantly higher proportion of ads viewed by black children as compared to white children, while breakfast cereals represented a significantly lower proportion.”

Issue 626