A large majority — 85 percent — of the parents polled about food marketing said foodmakers should reduce advertising to induce children to eat unhealthy foods, said the Rudd Center for Food and Obesity. The University of Connecticut center said that since 2012 support increased among parents for “policies to promote healthy eating habits for their children in the media, schools and communities.”
“Most of the parents surveyed indicated they are willing to take action to improve food marketing to children,” said the lead author of the study, Jennifer Harris, in a Rudd release. Black and Hispanic parents were more likely than white parents to express support for action. Some 3,608 parents with children from ages 2-17 were surveyed.
Two-thirds of the parents agreed food companies should limit advertisements for unhealthy foods to children at least to age 14. The food industry has a voluntary pledge to limit ads directed to children up to age 11. More than 60 percent supported an array of steps in the media, schools and communities to encourage healthy diets and a majority said they would take steps to encourage foodmakers to reduce marketing of unhealthy foods, such as not buying the products or signing an online petition against the marketing.