Children see significantly fewer television ads promoting food products today than they did 28 years ago, according to a new study by the staff of the Federal Trade Commission

Food & Drink Weekly, July 25, 2005

Children see significantly fewer television ads promoting food products today than they did 28 years ago, according to a new study by the staff of the Federal Trade Commission. Today, children watch about 13 food advertisements a day on television, down from more than 18 in 1977, the agency staff said.

The staff study did not address how many other food ads kids see through other kinds of promotions, including online gaming, package promotions and in-school marketing. The new study was released last week at the start of a two-day government workshop, sponsored by the FTC and the Department of Health and Human Services, to explore the effect of kids' marketing on obesity and the food advertising industry's efforts to self-regulate advertisements. The incidence of childhood obesity has more than doubled since 1970.