Abstract
In 2022, the World Health Organisation estimated that 39 million children globally were living with obesity, and it is estimated that by 2025, 167 million people (adults and children) will be susceptible to health problems associated with overweight or obesity. Marketing of unhealthy food products is designed to influence people to eat more of them, and some marketing materials are directed specifically at children and young people, resulting in changes to their eating habits that can contribute to overweight and obesity. Despite numerous calls for action to protect children and young people from the harmful impacts of food marketing, they continue to be exposed to sophisticated and persuasive marketing techniques. This study aimed to investigate young people’s exposure to and perceptions of unhealthy food advertising to co-produce an advocacy video aimed at young people and policymakers. The research that contributed to the co-design of the videos was conducted with 33 young people aged between 12 and 16 living in the Central Belt of Scotland. The research comprised four stages: workshops, photo elicitation, focus groups and video development. Young people reported being exposed to unhealthy food adverts every day and in numerous locations, including on outdoor billboards and posters, in shops and on social media. Many of the physical food adverts that young people saw were located near the restaurant they were advertising, tempting people to visit. Our findings highlight that young people feel overly exposed to unhealthy food advertising and they identified aspects of these adverts (e.g., colours, logos and slogans) that they felt influenced food purchasing choices for themselves and their peers. Many participants also noted that they rarely, if ever, saw marketing for healthy foods. These concerns were also reflected in participants’ contributions to the video production process. These findings suggest that young people support the need for stronger legislation in Scotland to reduce exposure to unhealthy food advertising, as well as the redesign of unhealthy food adverts, promotions, and packaging to be less eye-catching as this influences purchasing choices.