Parents call for ban on TV junk food ads before 9pm

The ComRes poll of more than 1,000 parents of children aged between three and 15, on behalf of the Children’s Food Trust, reveals that 59 per cent of parents questioned think junk food advertising makes it harder for them to feed their children a healthy diet.

The majority of parents (65 per cent) said they believed there should be a ban on TV advertising of products that are high in fat, sugar or salt before 9pm.

Parents said their children were more influenced by the advertising of chocolate bars and other confectionery than other junk foods such as crisps, fizzy drinks and cereals high in sugar.

The poll results, which will be discussed by panellists at the Children’s Food Trust Conference in London today, also show that 72 per cent of parents have bought chocolate, sweets, crisps and sugary drinks or cereals in the last month when they did not intend to, after being persuaded by their child.

Despite this, 69 per cent agree that they could do more to make their child’s diet healthier and 79 per cent say there should be minimum nutritional requirements for the food served by an organisation that may be looking after children.

A further 87 per cent said they would like to see healthier children’s menus in restaurants and 83 per cent would like smaller portions of the adult menu offered too.

Rob Rees, chair of the Children’s Food Trust, said, ‘Parents have such a tough job to encourage their children to eat healthily - and what's clear is that they think there are lots of ways we could make their lives easier.

‘This isn't about a "nanny state" - it's about what will help rather than hinder parents in feeding their children well.

‘If we're serious about reducing the crippling costs to the NHS of poor diet, we need to get behind parents on this.’

There has been a ban on advertising junk food during television programmes aimed at under-16s since 2008, but campaigners are calling for a pre-9pm watershed, because the ban does not include programmes considered family shows.