Obesity one of leading global risks for mortality

Global Health Risks, a new report from the WHO looks at 14 factors affecting health and identifies the top five global threats to health. Overweight and obesity is ranked at number five causing (5%) of global deaths - more than underweight. Together, the five risks identified are responsible for raising the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancers and cause one-quarter of the 60 million deaths estimated to occur annually. (i)

The study shows that in the case of coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death worldwide, eight factors - alcohol consumption, high blood glucose, tobacco use, high blood pressure, high body mass index, high cholesterol, low fruit and vegetable intake and physical inactivity - account for over 75% of cases, with most deaths occurring in developing countries.

It would seem obvious that positive messages about healthy eating and lifestyles and reducing children’s exposure to junk food advertising could play a key role in improving diet and combating many of these health challenges. The report found that tackling these five risk factors could increase global life expectancy by almost five years.

Read the full report here

(i) The other key risks identified by the report are: high blood pressure (responsible for 13% of deaths globally); tobacco use (9%);high blood glucose (6%);physical inactivity (6%)

Yale study reinforces calls for marketing code

A US study has found that industry regulation on marketing to children allows the least healthy cereals to be marketed the most forcefully.

Researchers from Yale’s Rudd Centre for Food Policy and Obesity analysed 277 individual cereal varieties across 115 brands and found that cereals marketed directly to children have 85 per cent more sugar, 65% less fibre, and 60% more sodium than cereals marketed for adult consumption. The report also found that cereal companies spend almost $156m a year on advertising to children.

Despite the fact that all the 19 cereal brands that were marketed directly to children meet industry’s own standards for ‘better-for-you’ foods, none of them meet the nutrition criteria required to advertise to children in the United Kingdom.

This study demonstrates the problems with industry self-regulation and reinforces the need for a WHO code on the marketing of junk food to children.

Read the full report here

Unhealthy food given to children under 3 reveals IDEC

Recognising that labelling information about levels of sugar, salt and fat in food is insufficient and too complicated to allow parents to make healthier choices, IDEC one of CI's Brazilian members asked researchers from UNIFESP, the Paediatrics Department of the University of Sao Paulo, to convert amounts of sugar, salt and fat to measurable intakes for equivalent food portion sizes.

The study conducted with a sample of 270 parents whose children attend nurseries, found that foods such as instant noodles, sugar, fruit juice from concentrate and snacks are being offered to very young children - even babies under three months old. The researchers produced two tables showing the frightening amount of sugar, salt and fat present in twelve foods most frequently offered to children under one year of age by 67% of parents.

Of the 100 manufactured foods most consumed by children under three years, 23 have a high level of fat. Only 20 were found adequate. Seventy-seven went beyond the recommended salt level and 98% were found to be expensive when compared to the amount of rice, beans or milk that could be bought for the same cost.

Instituto Brasileiro de Defesa do Consumidor (IDEC), BrasilWeb: http://www.idec.org.br and email:coex@idec.org.br

Consumers International urges caution over food industries’ claims on the marketing of food to children

A press release issued by major international food companies claims that their voluntary code on the marketing of food to children in Europe has resulted in a 93% decline in the advertising of ‘less healthy’ food to children. Specifically they say that the reduction, achieved as part of their ‘EU pledge’, refers to the advertising of products that do not meet their nutritional criteria in programmes with an audience composed of a majority of children.

Whilst CI welcomes any reduction in the marketing of unhealthy food to children, we urge caution over the interpretation of these figures.

Children over 12 are not included
Under the food companies’ marketing code, ‘children’ only refers to children under 12. Older children, who can be greatly influenced by advertising and who are in many cases just beginning to develop their own ideas about what constitutes a healthy diet, are not included.

Many programmes popular with children are not included
The food companies’ commitment not to advertise certain products to children only relates to media audiences in which children under 12 constitute more than 50% of the audience. This measures the proportion of children, rather than the numbers watching each programme. For example, research from CI’s UK member Which? that surveyed programmes on one day in the UK, found that using this method, junk food adverts were not permitted during the Simpsons, which has a child audience of 163,200, but were allowed during programmes such as The X Factor, which has nearly three times the child audience at 442,300.

Many products high in fat, sugar and salt are not included.
The EU Pledge is also weakened by the fact that companies use their own nutritional criteria to decide which products are included. As a result many companies’ own products are not included in their commitment, meaning that products that are still high in fat, sugar or salt continue to be marketed to children.

Many companies are not included
Twelve major international food and soft drink companies have signed up to the EU pledge however this leaves many large and small food companies that have not signed up to the pledge. Those who have not signed up to the pledge include fast food companies such as McDonalds and KFC.
Several important forms of marketing are not included
Commitments under the pledge apply to all advertising on TV, print and the Internet, however many other marketing techniques exist, and persuasive marketing ploys such as sponsorship and merchandise are often excluded.

Mars M&Ms website advertises branded bibs sold in the infant and toddler merchandise range. M&Ms contain more than 20% fat and 60% sugar.

The packaging for Kellogg’s Fruit Loops includes a film tie-in with Shrek the Third. The brightly coloured breakfast cereal contains more than 30% sugar


The Nesquik website with cartoon rabbit and ‘kids’ section. In a CI survey of breakfast cereals Nesquik contained on average 36% sugar.

Fast food children’s meals regularly include soft drinks with high levels of sugar.

In addition, although the EU Pledge applies to 27 countries, the monitoring that produced the figure was conducted with a sample of only 6 countries, with no data available for cable and satellite TV in France and Italy.

CI believes voluntary codes are failing to effectively curb the marketing of food high in fat, sugar and salt to children and is calling for the WHO to adopt an international code on Junk Food Mareting for all children up to the age of 16 and for this to be incorporated into national governments’ legislation.

New international survey: Fried and tested

A new international survey from Consumers International (CI) shows how McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC are still marketing meals with high levels of fat, sugar and salt to children.

Despite reformulating their products to reduce levels of fat, sugar and salt and offering ‘healthier’ options in some outlets, several fast food children’s meals were still found to contain more than 50% of a child’s guideline daily amount. For children between four and six years old some levels could reach 70% of the guideline daily amount.

The fast food chains’ marketing of children’s meals included free toys, cartoons and birthday parties that could appeal to very young children.

All of the chains continue to include high sugar fizzy drinks in the children’s meals they market to children despite the fact that Coca Cola and PepsiCo have policies that prohibit the marketing of their products to children under 12.

Marketing targeted at teenage children often promoted items from the adult menu that in many cases contain higher levels of fat, sugar and salt than the children’s options.

This report is part of CI’s Junk Food Generation campaign calling for an international code on the marketing of food to children. The code would target the marketing of energy dense nutrient poor food high in fat sugar and salt to children under 16. The World Health Organization (WHO) is currently developing recommendations on the issue for submission to member states.

The CI survey was conducted in 14 countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Read and download the report or summaries in English, Spanish and French.

CI member organisations are launching national reports over the next week. Read the report from UK member Which?

New international survey: Fried and tested

A new international survey from Consumers International (CI) shows how McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC are still marketing meals with high levels of fat, sugar and salt to children.

Despite reformulating their products to reduce levels of fat, sugar and salt and offering ‘healthier’ options in some outlets, several fast food children’s meals were still found to contain more than 50% of a child’s guideline daily amount. For children between four and six years old some levels could reach 70% of the guideline daily amount.

The fast food chains’ marketing of children’s meals included free toys, cartoons and birthday parties that could appeal to very young children.

All of the chains continue to include high sugar fizzy drinks in the children’s meals they market to children despite the fact that Coca Cola and PepsiCo have policies that prohibit the marketing of their products to children under 12.

Marketing targeted at teenage children often promoted items from the adult menu that in many cases contain higher levels of fat, sugar and salt than the children’s options.

This report is part of CI’s Junk Food Generation campaign calling for an international code on the marketing of food to children. The code would target the marketing of energy dense nutrient poor food high in fat sugar and salt to children under 16. The World Health Organization (WHO) is currently developing recommendations on the issue for submission to member states.

The CI survey was conducted in 14 countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America.

Read and download the report or summaries in English, Spanish and French.

CI member organisations are launching national reports over the next week. Read the report from UK member Which?

Increased imports of unhealthy food feed obesity pandemic

Researchers in Central America have now linked the increase in imports of unhealthy food to a rise in obesity numbers.

A study, published in the open access journal, Globalisation and Health, compared changing trade tariffs and imports.

It came to the conclusion that free trade has influenced the “nutrition transition” in Central America, which sees low income families departing from their traditional diets and increasingly eating processed and fast food.

Some figures, highlighted in the article show the increased demand for unhealthy foods. For example, the import of processed cheese, has increased by over 3000% since the early 1990s. Furthermore, French fries make up 23% of the fruit and vegetable import – as processed potatoes – to the region.

These findings have sparked discussions about the impact of new trade agreements on the health of the poor in Central America.