Television Food and Beverage Marketing to Children in Costa Rica: Is a Regulatory Policy Needed?

Abstract

BackgroundChildhood overweight and obesity is a global public health concern, affecting 21.4% and 20.8% of Costa Rican children (5–12 years of age) and adolescents (13–19 years of age), respectively. Marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages (i.e. those high in saturated fat, sugar and/or sodium) has been shown to influence children's food preferences and consumption.Little is known, however, regarding the scope of the problem in Costa Rica. This study aimed to examine the extent and nature of television food advertisements which children are likely to be exposed to, as well as the nutrition profile of the foods and beverages advertised in Costa Rica.MethodsTelevision data were recorded for four weekdays and four weekend days, between 6:00 am and midnight, for four channels (two national and two cable), that were selected based on audience measurement data and a clear focus on children (i.e. cartoon channels). We obtained a total sample of 288 hours of television broadcasting, during the months of September and November 2016.ResultsAcross all channels, 8983 advertisements (ads) were identified, of which 20.75% were for foods and beverages (F&B). Cable channels showed a higher number of F&B advertisements during weekends compared to weekdays. On average, the two national channels presented 70.9 (SD=19.2) F&B ads/day on weekdays, and 29.8/day (SD=16.2) on weekends; whereas the two cable channels resulted in a mean 57.8 (SD=16.6) F&B ads/day on weekdays and 74.6 (SD= 31.8) F&B ads/day on weekends. A total of 224 F&B items were advertised, many of which generally considered high in fat, sugar and/or sodium: fast‐food (10.71%), candy and chocolates (9.38%), sugar sweetened beverages (5.36%), snack foods (4.91%%), canned and dehydrated meal helpers and soups (4.91%), processed meats (4.02%) and sauces and dressings (4.02%).ConclusionsChildren and adolescents living in Costa Rica are exposed to television marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages daily. Due to the link between food marketing, preferences and consumption, our findings help justify the need for regulatory actions by national authorities.Support or Funding InformationThis study was supported by a research training grant from IDRC‐CRDI and CIIPEC‐INCAP