The source of sweetness: in the Russian Federation they propose to introduce a ban on showing children in advertising of unhealthy food

In Russia, it is proposed to introduce a ban on showing children in advertisements for unhealthy food. We are talking about products with a high content of sugar, fat and salt. Boris Gladkikh, a deputy of the United Russia party, made such a request to Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova. The reason is a 1.5-fold increase in cases of obesity in children. Since January 2024, the country has started to implement a set of measures to combat this disease. Experts recognize the existence of such a problem in the country, but believe that a ban on showing children in advertising will not solve the problem.

Why the number of obese children is growing in Russia

In the Russian Federation it is proposed to ban the use of children in advertising of goods with a high content of sugar, fat and salt. Boris Gladkikh, a deputy of the State Duma from United Russia, addressed Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova with such a request.

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"According to the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, today more than 6% of Russian children are obese, and one in five is overweight. Over the past 12 years, the incidence has increased 1.5 times in children under 14 years old and almost twice in adolescents from 14 to 18 years old," he says in the document, which was read by Izvestia.

In most cases, the cause of childhood obesity is related to improper nutrition, which is often characterized by uncontrolled consumption of products with high sugar content, including hidden sugar, the deputy stresses.

According to the Ministry of Health, the recommended rational norm of sugar consumption is 24 kg per person per year, including all products containing it. However, according to the deputy in a letter to the Deputy Prime Minister, taking into account the consumption of products with hidden sugar content, this figure exceeds 32 kg per year.

The deputy recalls that from January 2024 in Russia, on the instructions of Tatyana Golikova, a set of measures to combat obesity in children and adolescents began to be implemented, the main goal of which is to reduce the growth rate of primary morbidity. Among other things, the Ministry of Health has developed an approach to expert evaluation of advertising products on children's nutrition in terms of their impact on public health. However, according to him, so far the requirements for advertising have not been enshrined anywhere normatively.

In this regard, Boris Gladkikh suggests that by analogy with the introduction of a ban on the use of people and animals in the advertising of low-alcohol products, a ban should be imposed on the use of children's images in the advertising of goods with a high content of sugar, fat and salt, if they are harmful to health. In addition, he proposes to introduce administrative liability for violation of this prohibition.

Photo: Global Look Press/Creativ Studio Heinemann

- In addition to pastries, chocolate, jams, jams and other obvious sweets, excessive sugar content is characteristic of such foods as fruit and cereal yogurts, muesli, breakfast cereals, instant porridge, various sauces, including ketchup, juices and carbonated drinks, chips, canned fruit and a number of others," the deputy explained to Izvestia.

According to him, they are an integral part of children's diets in today's food culture.

- Massive advertising on TV and on the Internet of this category of products with the participation of children creates false ideas about its benefits and contradicts the principles of proper nutrition," Boris Gladkikh believes.

"Izvestia" sent an inquiry to the Ministry of Health with a request to comment on the prospect of supporting the deputy's proposal.

- The deputy's appeal was received by the government apparatus, the document will be considered in due course. The answer will be sent to the applicant," the press service of the Cabinet told Izvestia.

Ban on advertising of harmful products with the participation of children

The initiative to ban the advertising of harmful products with the participation of children deserves support, and it is good that it is proposed at the level of the State Duma, nutritionist Larisa Gabdulkhakova told Izvestia. According to her, it shows the scale of the problem with obesity, which has so far been voiced only by medical workers.

- Something big and global begins with a small thing. But I hope that there will be other proposals that will not only affect advertising, because the growth of obese citizens is not only affected by this," she explained to Izvestia.

Photo: Izvestia/Anna Selina

According to her, another problem is the hidden content of sugar and salt in products, which are not indicated on the packages of goods.

- The manufacturer puts them to improve the flavor of useless food products. And it turns out that a person is deceived or accustomed to excess sugar, which often leads to disease and ill health. If he has a predisposition to diabetes, then against the background of consumption of products with hidden content of this additive can develop this disease, - explained Larisa Gabdulkhakova.

Such products include dried fruit, tomato ketchup, yogurt with additives, soy sauce, instant porridge, breakfast cereals and muesli, cereal bars, salad sauces, as well as sushi and rolls. For example, per 100 g of canned peas has about 4.5 g of sugar, and per 100 g of corn from a can - 14 g or more. Sausages and sausages also contain a lot of it - there can be 20 teaspoons or more in 1 kg of product.

- According to WHO, a full healthy life requires no more than 25 g per day. And this is for adults, for children - and even less. 25 g of sugar is about six teaspoons or a 50-gram bar of chocolate," Larisa Gabdulkhakova explained.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Pavel Lisitsyn

According to her, the WHO recommends consuming no more than 5 grams of salt a day. However, most people eat about twice as much - 9-12 grams on average, she noted.

- Obesity is a very serious problem; unfortunately, it has also affected our country. A large percentage of Russians today have excess fat mass. Therefore, the impact on the food preferences of the population is very important. The initiative of the State Duma deputy can be supported, because children are especially exposed to the influence of advertising, - said endocrinologist, doctor of medical sciences Inna Misnikova.

She noted that products with a high content of added sugar are very harmful to health. These are, for example, drinks with sweeteners, juice-containing or carbonated, even dairy products - cocktails. Sometimes it is even put in ready-made soups to improve the flavor, Inna Misnikova noted. Therefore, it is important that consumers carefully study the labels and composition of food products.

- The beverage industry supports initiatives aimed at developing a culture of rational consumption and healthy lifestyle principles. In this matter, it is important to launch projects that can really influence public health indicators," the press service of the Union of Beverage Industry explained to Izvestia.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

At the same time, they noted that the industry "does not support the demonization of certain types of food products and the division of products according to the principle of "harmful" and "useful", as it can be used for discriminatory purposes. The association stressed that producers of soft drinks in Russia have already minimized advertising involving children and in 2019 signed the relevant Code of Voluntary Commitments aimed at developing a culture of rational consumption.

In addition, after the introduction of excise duty on sugar-containing drinks in 2023, manufacturers made large-scale changes in the formulation of drinks and significantly reduced its content in them. The share of "full-sugar" drinks has dropped from about 70-75% to 35-40%. Thus, manufacturers have already made a significant contribution to reducing the consumption of this additive and continue to do so, according to the Soyuznapitkas.