Raulken co.UK - TV Ads Contribute to Childhood Obesity, Economists Say

By RONI CARYN RABIN Banning fast food advertisements from children’s television programs would reduce the number of overweight children in the US by 18 percent and decrease the number of overweight teens by 14 percent, economists have estimated in a...

Banning fast-food advertising could lead to a decrease in the number of overweight and obese children by as much as 18 percent, according to a new study published this month in the Journal of Law and Economics.
Childhood obesity has become a national problem in the United States. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that the percentage of children ages 6 to 11 more than tripled between 1970 and 1999, as reports show that one out of four children in the US is obese or overweight. Thirty years ago, just one out of seven children had problems with his weight.
Childhood obesity has become a major reason of concern, as most of the obese children are more likely to develop obesity-related diseases. According to the American Diabetes Association, about 176,500 children and adolescents younger than 20 have diabetes, and 2 million teenagers have blood glucose levels higher than normal, a condition called pre-diabetes. These children are also exposed to cardiovascular disease in their 20s and 30s. According to a study presented last week at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2008 in New Orleans, many obese children and teenagers have arteries as thick and stiff as those of 45-year-olds, a sign that such children could have severe cardiovascular disease at a much younger age than their parents unless something is done...
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