Eyes on the ads
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Some ads are more important to some people than to others, and one study highlights this in food ads.
At the Norris Cotton Cancer Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, researcher Auden McClure looked at survey data on about 2,500 people from 15 to 23 years old. She found the young people who were obese were more likely to notice, name the brands, and like fast food brands advertised on TV. This doesn’t show ads helped to make the young people obese. But McClure says the study suggests that young people should pay attention to what they are being sold:
"I think it is important for youth to be aware of the influence of marketing, so they can work to make healthy choices."
The study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine was supported by the National Institutes of Health.
Learn more at healthfinder.gov.
HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.