It's time to protect our children from all junk food advertising

Today Obesity Action Scotland joins forces with partners across the UK to call for far-reaching restrictions on junk food adverts.  We have published a joint position statement calling for children to be protected from junk food adverts across all the media they are exposed to, both in and out of the home.

Obesity Action Scotland wants to see a 9pm watershed on junk food adverts implemented across all media devices and channels to protect children from the harmful effects of marketing of foods high in fat, sugar and salt. This 9pm watershed should include live TV, TV on demand, radio, all types of online, social media, apps, in-game, cinema and digital outdoor advertising such as billboards.

With the UK Government promising a consultation on advertising restrictions and the Scottish Government agreeing to explore action on devolved aspects of advertising, now is the time to send a clear message that exposing children to junk food advertising is unacceptable.

Lorraine Tulloch, Programme Lead of Obesity Action Scotland said:

“We know that junk food adverts influence what children eat and contribute to childhood obesity.  The current restrictions do not go far enough as they don’t cover family viewing time or popular Saturday night TV viewing. It is also clear that screen time for children is changing and they are spending increasing time online on their phones or playing games.  We need to ensure they are protected from junk food adverts on all forms of media.  It’s time for government to step up and take action to protect the health of our children.”

 Read our policy position in full here

The position is also supported by a range of other stakeholders including Obesity Health Alliance, Living Loud, academics from the University of Liverpool and the Open University and Jamie Oliver.  A similar press release has been issued by Obesity Health Alliance today.