Search

Background: Over the past three decades the global prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity has increased by 47%. Marketing of energy-dense nutrient-poor foods and beverages contributes to this worldwide increase. Previous research on food marketing to children largely uses self-report, reporting by parents, or third-party observation of children's environments, with the focus mostly on single settings and/or media. This paper reports on innovative research, Kids'Cam, in which children wore cameras to examine the frequency and nature of everyday exposure to food marketing across multiple media and settings. Methods: Kids'Cam was a cross-sectional study of 168 children (mean age 12.6 years, SD = 0.5) in Wellington, New Zealand. Each child wore a wearable camera on four consecutive days, capturing images automatically every seven seconds. Images were manually coded as either recommended (core) or not recommended (non-core) to be marketed to children by setting, marketing medium, and product category. Images in convenience stores and supermarkets were excluded as marketing examples were considered too numerous to count. Results: On average, children were exposed to non-core food marketing 27.3 times a day (95% CI 24.8, 30.1) across all settings. This was more than twice their average exposure to core food marketing (12.3 per day, 95% CI 8.7, 17.4). Most non-core exposures occurred at home (33%), in public spaces (30%) and at school (19%). Food packaging was the predominant marketing medium (74% and 64% for core and non-core foods) followed by signs (21% and 28% for core and non-core). Sugary drinks, fast food, confectionary and snack foods were the most commonly encountered noncore foods marketed. Rates were calculated using Poisson regression. Conclusions: Children in this study were frequently exposed, across multiple settings, to marketing of non-core foods not recommended to be marketed to children. The study provides further evidence of the need for urgent action to reduce children's exposure to marketing of unhealthy foods, and suggests the settings and media in which to act. Such action is necessary if the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity's vision is to be achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child confirms a child's right to adequate food, and to the highest attainable standard of health. For indigenous children, these rights are also recognised in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. However, Indigenous children endure higher rates of obesity and related health conditions than non-indigenous children, including in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ). For indigenous tamariki (Māori children) in NZ, high levels of obesity are interconnected with high rates of food insecurity. Therefore there is a need for action. This study aimed to investigate policy options that would safeguard the rights of indigenous children to healthy food. We explored with key stakeholder's policy options to ensure the rights of indigenous children to healthy food, through a case study of the rights of tamariki., Methods: Interviews were conducted with 15 key stakeholders, with experience in research, development or delivery of policies to safeguard the rights of tamariki to healthy food. Iterative thematic analysis of the transcripts identified both deductive themes informed by Kaupapa Māori theory and literature on rights-based approaches and inductive themes from the interviews., Results: The analysis suggests that to ensure the right to adequate food and to healthy food availability for tamariki, there needs to be: a comprehensive policy response that supports children's rights; an end to child poverty; food provision and food policy in schools; local government policy to promote healthy food availability; and stronger Māori voices and values in decision-making., Conclusions: The right to food for indigenous children, is linked to political and economic systems that are an outcome of colonisation. A decolonising approach where Māori voices and values are central within NZ policies and policy-making processes is needed. Given the importance of food to health, a broad policy approach from the NZ government to ensure the right to adequate food is urgent. This includes economic policies to end child poverty and specific strategies such as food provision and food policy in schools. The role of Iwi (tribes) and local governments needs to be further explored if we are to improve the right to adequate food within regions of NZ.