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Published on: July 29, 2020
Food-related advertising geared toward Mexican children
Karla Ramírez-Ley1, Cynthia De Lira-García, María de las Cruces Souto-Gallardo
1Facultad de Medicina y Psicología, Graduate Nutrition Program, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico.
Background:
Overweight and obesity have dramatically increased in recent years. In 2006, the prevalence of overweight and obesity among 6- to 12-year-old children was 26% in Mexico. Food advertising has shown to be a contributor to childhood obesity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the frequency and types of food advertisements geared toward children living in Baja California.
Methods:
Two local channels and three national channels, during a period of 7 h on weekday afternoons and 6 h on weekend mornings, were recorded for 7 days. A total of 235 h were recorded and analyzed.
Results:
A total of 8299 advertisements were registered; 22% were food-related and 50% were geared toward children. The average of food-related advertisements (FRAs) per half an hour was 4, and half of them were geared toward children. During the time that children may be watching television, 50% of all FRAs were potato and corn chips, desserts and cakes, juices, sweetened cereals, candies, cookies, sweetened beverages and fast foods, which comprises a higher percentage of adult-oriented FRA (32 versus 22%).
Conclusion:
Children are systematically more exposed than adults to advertisements for high-energy-dense foods.
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