Advert-free television is better for you, says research

ON-DEMAND television may be the healthier option for teenagers because it does not bombard them with advertising for junk food and sweet drinks.

Cancer Research UK has found that annually youngsters can eat an extra 500 snacks, including crisps, biscuits and fizzy drinks while watching commercial television.

However, when watching advertising-free platforms, researchers found no link between screen time and the temptation to eat more junk food.

Those who streamed programmes with commercials were more than twice as likely to drink fizzy pop compared with others who have low exposure to advertising from streaming TV.

Dr Jyotsna Vohra, the lead author of the report, said: “This is the strongest evidence yet that junk food adverts increase how much teens choose to eat … it suggests a strong association between advertising and eating habits.”

Although junk food endorsements have been restricted for children’s television programmes since 2007, loopholes allow such advertising during talent shows or sports programmes that are popular with young people, leading to renewed calls for a 9pm watershed on all junk food adverts.

One in five children at primary school are obese, rising to one in four by the age of 15. Caroline Cerny, of the Obesity Health Alliance, said: “This research adds further weight to the evidence about just how much junk food adverts influence what children eat.”

Obesity is the second biggest preventable cause of cancer in the UK after smoking, and is linked to 13 cancers including bowel, breast, and pancreatic. Conditions related to unhealthy weight gain cost the NHS £16billion a year.