Children winning junk food war as parents cave to pester power, new study finds – UK Times

Children are increasingly dictating household food purchases, with new research revealing that parents frequently succumb to demands for junk food.

A study presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul highlights the significant pester power parents across England face during their weekly food shop.

More than half (58%) of 1,050 parents surveyed admitted their children or teenagers frequently pester them to buy products high in fat, salt, or sugar.

Consequently, nearly three-quarters (72%) of parents reported often purchasing the requested items.

Many parents (59%) also confessed to being swayed by price promotions and in-store offers, leading to unplanned food purchases, while 52% attributed these buys to shopping with children.

Lead researcher Emma Boyland, a professor of food marketing and child health at the University of Liverpool, stated: “While children might not be paying the bill at the checkout, their influence over their parents’ purchasing decisions is very real.

“Parents can, and do, say no but the current food environment does not help parents to feed their children healthy diets.

“Our findings highlight the need for significant transformation of online and in-store food shopping environments and marketing, both of which have a huge influence on what products parents buy and children eat, and increase the risk of childhood obesity.”

The survey predominantly featured women (67%) with children aged between one and 18.

Results indicated that 58% reported their child or children “frequently” or “always” requested products while food shopping, with only 4% saying their child never did.

Younger children, aged four to 11, were found to make more demands than those aged 12 to 18, and were more likely to pester than toddlers aged three and under.

The most sought-after items included ice creams and lollies (45%), sweets and chocolates (43%), and sweets and biscuits (42%).

Over half of parents noted children verbally asked for products, one in three children physically placed items in the basket or trolley, and around one in six mentioned a product display or in-store advert.

Older children appeared more susceptible to in-store or media advertisements.

However, a quarter of parents overall said seeing branded, child-friendly characters on packaging, or watching food adverts on TV or online before shopping, was driving these requests.

Alarmingly, almost a quarter (23%) of parents reported that these requests made them feel upset, guilty, or distressed.

Co-author Dr Magdalena Muc, from the Open University, commented: “Children are highly susceptible to powerful and sophisticated marketing of unhealthy foods and beverages, and the frequent exposure we observe prompts them to pester their parents, putting them at greater risk of developing overweight and obesity.

“Concerningly, our findings suggest that it is the parents experiencing food insecurity who are pestered more frequently and it can be a real source of distress.”