Junk food TV ad ban will cover under-16s: Ofcom

Junk food TV ad ban will cover under-16s

Extract:

"New rules designed to reduce children's exposure to "junk food" adverts on television were announced yesterday — and immediately came under fire from the food industry and health campaigners.

The regulator Ofcom said the ban will stop commercials for foods high in salt, sugar and fat being broadcast during children's programmes and shows "of particular appeal to viewers under 16".

This is part of a Government drive to reduce childhood obesity after evidence that television adverts have a modest effect on youngsters' diets.

The food industry called the rules ridiculous and disproportionate. Under the formula used to define junk food, adverts for cheddar cheese, Marmite, ketchup, raisins and porridge would be banned."

See also Junk food ad rules too watered down, say health groups

If adverts for "raisins and porridge" would be banned that would be strange indeed because both of these foods are low in salt and so are very good for children and would certainly not cause obesity in children! - Cheddar cheese, Marmite, ketchup are all high in salt/sodium and so are unsuitable foods for children, especially if the children are already overweight.

When children become fat it is essentially because they are eating salty food. Children are especially vulnerable to salt because of their small size and small blood volume, and because their blood vessels are weaker than those of adults. Salt, and the water it attracts to it, can more easily distend weak blood vessels than fully mature ones. The resulting increase in blood volume and other fluid retention results in weight gain, as well as higher blood pressure and many other undesirable consequences. The smaller the child, the less salt they should have - and a baby, of course, should have no salt at all. - Babies can die if they are fed salty food.

Because children have much smaller bodies than adults it would be best if they had no more than half as much salt as adults. Most children, however, have much more than this because they eat so many snacks and instant foods. Just one cheeseburger, for instance, contains almost double the recommended daily salt maximum for children. There are high amounts of salt in packet soups, instant noodles, ketchup and sauces, sausages, burgers and savoury snacks. Fat children will lose weight fast if they eat less salt. And even faster still if they eat plenty of fresh fruit and unsalted vegetables, because these are rich in potassium, which helps to displace sodium from the body.

See http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/children.html