Will it work for them? UK to ban junk food adverts during children’s viewing hours

Another fight against the global obesity epidemic: Britain will ban junk food adverts on the internet and on TV before 9pm, Public Health Secretary Andrew Gwynne has told MPs. The new rules will come into effect from October next year and are designed to prevent children from viewing advertisements for foods high in fat, salt and sugar.

Child obesity is a major problem that worries experts throughout the Western world and in the United Kingdom, where more than a fifth of children aged 4 to 5 were overweight in 2022 to 2023. This rate increased to approximately 37% in children aged 10 to 11. The rate of childhood obesity in Israel is also on the rise : According to a report by the Ministry of Health from 2022, about 22% of children between the ages of 6 and 7 are obese or overweight.

Many studies carried out in recent years and published by, among others, the World Health Organization, the American Institute of Health and the American Pediatric Association have shown a direct link between food advertisements and children’s body weight. The findings showed a direct link between watching junk food commercials and weight gain and increasing the risk of obesity among children.

A ban on junk food advertising was originally proposed by Britain’s previous government at the start of the Conservative Party, and the move was also supported by the Labor Party. Officials also promised to introduce a smoking ban that would make the sale of cigarettes and tobacco products illegal to minors. However, the law will not criminalize smoking itself by minors.

Several countries in the world have already imposed restrictions that prohibit junk food advertisements during certain hours of the day, when children and young people may view them. In Cyprus, Sweden, Norway and France there is a ban on broadcasting advertisements of products high in salt, fat and sugar before the evening hours. As mentioned, Britain is expected to join them and ban the broadcast of such advertisements before 9:00 p.m.

In the past there were several initiatives in Israel to limit junk food advertisements. Among other things, the Simhon Committee report in 2012 in the field of public health suggested imposing restrictions on such advertisements in the media during children’s viewing hours. The Ministry of Health also recommended in the past to limit the broadcast of such advertisements, but the proposal did not progress into a regulation or law.

“The legislation to limit junk food advertisements on television that is being promoted in the UK is groundbreaking,” says Dr. Michal Kasher Miron, an expert in endocrinology and director of the “Assuta Light” center for the treatment of overweight, “the restriction looks at nutrition from a broad angle of consumer behavior. Such a move may have an impact on the obesity epidemic. However, it is important to remember that the obesity epidemic in Israel, as in the world, is driven by a large number of factors, and eating behavior is a significant factor, but not the only one.”