This study quantifies children’s and adolescents’ exposure to advertising for these products and how it has changed over time, particularly on television. In France, according to the 2015 Esteban study, 17% of children aged 6 to 17 were overweight, and 4% of them were obese. Scientists in France and around the world agree on the impact of marketing on children’s food preferences and consumption, and thus on overweight and obesity, primarily due to the increase in energy intake it causes. Santé publique France therefore recommends better regulating food marketing, particularly by limiting advertising for products of lower nutritional quality.

Exposure to fatty, sugary, and salty products: current status

The 2019 study conducted by Santé publique France provides new insights into media consumption and evolving media usage patterns in the context of food. For the first time, it enabled the use of a nutritional profile to categorize the most heavily advertised food products, as recommended by the WHO.

Changing media consumption

While television remains the most-watched medium among 4- to 12-year-olds (1 hour and 28 minutes per day), the internet has become the top medium consumed by adolescents (1 hour and 59 minutes per day).
Today, youth television programs with regulated advertising on public service channels account for less than 0.5% of the programs watched by children. The 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM time slot is the most watched by children and teenagers (more than 20% of them) and also corresponds to one of the time slots during which the largest volume of advertisements is broadcast.

Food advertising spending is primarily on television (60%) and the Internet (estimated at 20%)

Investments totaled €1.1 billion net in 2018, with 48% of them targeting products with Nutri-Score D and E ratings.

The advertisements seen on television are predominantly for products with Nutri-Score D and E ratings.

In 2018, advertisements for Nutri-Score D and E products accounted for 53.3% of food advertisements viewed by children and 52.5% of those viewed by adolescents. Furthermore, of all television food advertisements for Nutri-Score D and E products viewed by children and adolescents, half are aired between 7:00 PM and 10:00 PM, when more than 20% of children and adolescents are watching television.

Analysis: Anne-Juliette Serry, Head of the Nutrition and Physical Activity Unit

Why is food marketing a key issue in the fight against obesity?
Today, there are numerous studies demonstrating the impact of advertising on the eating behaviors of children and young people. We know that exposure to advertising for fatty, sugary, and salty products creates preferences and increases consumption of these types of products; it also increases the pressure children exert on their parents to buy them. Advertising has a real impact on children’s eating habits and consumption patterns. These factors argue in favor of regulating food marketing for products of lower nutritional quality, not only on television during times when the largest number of children and adolescents are watching, but also on the Internet, where usage is on the rise.

What recommendations exist to limit children’s exposure to advertising? The WHO has recommended implementing regulations to limit children’s exposure to
advertising since 2010, and some countries, such as Canada and the United Kingdom, have already done so. In France, to date, no such measures exist. Overweight affects 17% of French children aged 6 to 17, 4% of whom are obese, and remains strongly influenced by social health inequalities. Combating overweight and obesity is a public health issue that requires action on all determinants. Limiting children’s exposure to an obesogenic environment—which includes strong and repeated incentives to consume—is part of this effort.
To this end, we recommend banning advertisements for products with lower nutritional value (Nutri-Score D and E) on television and the internet during times when the most children are in front of screens.

Why use Nutri-Score to categorize products?
The WHO recommendation is to use nutritional profiles to classify products and determine which ones may continue to be advertised and which ones require restrictions. Nutri-Score was chosen as the benchmark because it is the nutritional profile used in France, and many manufacturers have already adopted it.