Children will be protected from exposure to junk food ads under new regulations, which have been introduced to tackle childhood obesity.
From Monday (5 January), adverts for less healthy food and drinks will be banned on television before 21h00, and online at all times. This is expected to remove up to 7.2 billion calories from children’s diets each year, reduce the number of children living with obesity by 20,000, and deliver around £2 billion in health benefits over time.
Evidence shows advertising influences what and when children eat, shaping preferences from a young age and increasing the risk of obesity and related illnesses. The ban targets the media that children and young people use most at the times they use it.
At the start of primary school, 22.1% of children in England are living with overweight or obesity, and this rises to 35.8% by the time they leave. Tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions for young children (typically ages 5-9) in the UK.
“We promised to do everything we can to give every child the best and healthiest start in life,” said Minister for Health, Ashley Dalton.
“By restricting adverts for junk food before 9pm and banning paid adverts online, we can remove excessive exposure to unhealthy foods – making the healthy choice the easy choice for parents and children.
“We’re moving the dial from having the NHS treat sickness, to preventing it so people can lead healthier lives and so it can be there for us when we need it.”
Previous interventions, such as the Soft Drinks Industry Levy resulted in businesses reformulating to make products healthier, and the measures coming into effect today have already had a similar impact, driving the development and promotion of healthier options.
The Soft Drink Industry Levy will also be extended to cover more products, including sugary milk-based drinks – and we’re helping to further improve kids’ diets by banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16.
The government has confirmed that it also plans to halt the advertising and sponsorship of vapes, limiting their packaging, flavours, and displays, which lure young people in.
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