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Background: Unhealthy environments and food advertisements are major determinants of childhood obesity. Recent regulation has banned unhealthy foods from schools in Mexico. However, currently there is no regulation limiting exposure to food marketing around schools. Thus, our objective was to analyze the characteristics of food advertising practices around 60 elementary schools in two cities and to evaluate compliance with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) recommendations and the local food industry self-regulatory marketing code., Methods: Data were collected during the period of October 2012 to March 2013. A random sample of elementary schools was selected from two Mexican cities. Using geographic information systems, we drew a 100-m-diameter buffer around each school. Trained personnel obtained photographs to assess the locations and types of food advertisements. Our results were stratified by school type and by indicators of compliance with the PAHO and industry recommendations. We developed a multivariate negative binomial regression model to determine factors predicting the number of advertisements around schools., Results: The number of advertisements was significantly higher around public schools than around private schools (6.5 ± 5.6 vs. 2.4 ± 3.5, p < 0.05). Printed posters were the most common type of marketing medium (97%), showing mostly sugar-sweetened beverages, sweet breads, candies, and bottled water. Promotions, such as special prices or gifts, were included on 30% of printed posters. Food advertising practices were often in compliance with industry recommendations (83%) but not with those from the PAHO (32%) (p < 0.001)., Conclusion: Our results support the importance of monitoring the obesogenic environment and identifying policy tools to protect children from food marketing not only inside schools but also around them, particularly in lower income communities.

Background: Mexico has seen a very steep increase in child obesity level. Little is known about caloric beverage intake in this country as well as all other countries outside a few high income countries. This study examines overall patterns and trends in all caloric beverages from two nationally representative surveys from Mexico., Methods: The two nationally representative dietary intake surveys (1999 and 2006) from Mexico are used to study caloric beverage intake in 17, 215 children. The volume (ml) and caloric energy (kcal) contributed by all beverages consumed by the sample subjects were measured. Results are weighted to be nationally representative., Results: The trends from the dietary intake surveys showed very large increases in caloric beverages among pre-school and school children. The contribution of whole milk and sugar-sweetened juices was an important finding. Mexican pre-school children consumed 27.8% of their energy from caloric beverages in 2006 and school children consumed 20.7% of their energy from caloric beverages during the same time. The three major categories of beverage intake are whole milk, fruit juice with various sugar and water combinations and carbonated and noncarbonated sugared-beverages., Conclusion: The Mexican government, greatly concerned about obesity, has identified the large increase in caloric beverages from whole milk, juices and soft drinks as a key target and is initiating major changes to address this problem. They have already used the data to shift 20 million persons in their welfare and feeding programs from whole to 1.5% fat milk and in a year will shift to nonfat milk. They are using these data to revise school beverage policies and national regulations and taxation policies related to an array of less healthful caloric beverages.