Newsflash! – Junk food advertising is misleading!!!

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The BBC has reported that 83% of U.K. consumers “believed irresponsible marketing was making it harder to encourage children to eat well”.

The survey was conducted by Which?, the U.K.’s largest independent consumer organization.

The survey also found that “most of the 2,000 questioned want the government to do more to control the marketing of unhealthy food to children”.

Currently, the Brits have banned television commercials promoting junk food programmes aimed at children under 16.

Supporters of this survey are now calling for complete ban on junk food advertising on ALL programmes aired before 9 p.m. Additionally, they are requesting the government impose rules addressing junk food advertising on the internet and on packaging.

The ‘icing on the cake’ argument was offered by Clare Corbett, a food campaigner at Which?.

Corbett said “With childhood obesity and diet-related health problems on the increase, the government must take serious action and soon.”

To summarize:

• Junk food is bad

• Advertisers brainwash children into wanting junk food

• Children pester their parents

• Parents feed their children junk food

• Children get fat eating junk food while watching television ads about junk food

• The U.K.’s largest consumer protection group asks parents if the government should be doing more to keep their children safe from obesity

• Parents overwhelmingly agree, demanding that the government solve childhood obesity by removing the offending advertisements.

• Advertisers produce another survey indicating that “76% of UK adults believe that introducing a 9pm watershed on food advertising would not reduce the level of childhood obesity”.

• The government is left to decide if banning all junk food ads on t.v. before 9 p.m. will win them the next election.

Your daily dose of reality

• Junk food is bad

• We are genetically disposed to prefer sweet, salty, greasy, calorie dense foods. We crave these things as a mechanism of survival. Genetics. Millions of years.

• Advertisers know this. Food manufacturers know this. They sell us what we want. If we don’t want it, we won’t buy it. If we don’t buy it, they won’t sell it.

• Every parent knows that feeding your children junk food while sitting them in front of the t.v. is guaranteed to make them fat.

What to do, what to do

• Parents set the example for their children.

• Stop buying junk food. Not just for your children, you too.

• Stop watching t.v. Get outside and exercise. If it’s too cold, read a book.

• Stop expecting the government to do everything for you.

The rant endeth.

My fitness blog

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Tags: advertising, ban, big brother, consumer, diet, fitness, governnment, health, junk food, marketing, obesity, physical fitness