At a meeting of the Oireachtas Heart and Stroke Group in Leinster House, the Irish Heart Foundation called for legislative action to protect children from digital junk food marketing. 

 For the first time in history, children on the island of Ireland are at risk of living shorter lives than their parents. As outlined in the Irish Heart Foundation’s recent call for a full ban on online junk food marketing, an estimated 85,000 children facing premature death due to obesity-related causes, the Irish Heart Foundation warned legislators that current self-regulatory systems have failed to address the primary driver of this crisis: the digital environment. 

 Children are being bombarded by digital junk food marketing, a primary driver of the childhood obesity crisis. “We know that seeing just one single junk food ad will add an average of 30 – 50 calories to a child’s diet. But it only takes 48-71 calories daily for kids to gain weight overtime” – Chris Macey  

 The Clickbite study found that children see up to 19 junk food ads every hour they are online, meaning a child in primary school using social media for two hours daily is exposed to an average of 10,950 unhealthy food posts annually. For teenagers, who report significantly higher levels of daily use, exposure can exceed 30,000 posts per year. 

These findings identify influencer-led content as one of the most powerful forms of digital marketing.  This content operates largely outside existing regulatory frameworks, exploiting relationships where children view influencers as trusted voices rather than advertisers. 

Speaking on the Claire Byrne show, Professor Mimi Tatlow Golden from the Open University and lead researchers of the study, explained that children find influencer content highly relatable and enjoyable. “Children are engaging with influencer content for up to 15 seconds, that’s 5 times longer than traditional ads” – Mimi Tatlow Golden 

 The Irish Heart Foundation’s call for regulation is backed by overwhelming public support. An Ipsos poll found that 80% of the public back a ban on online junk food marketing to under-18s, with 79% supporting a specific ban on celebrity and influencer endorsement.  

 “We now have conclusive proof of the extent and impact of junk food marketing on our children, which provides Government with a simple decision: protect the health of children or the profits of multinational food corporations.” 

“There can be no more voluntary codes to provide a pretence of action. Only a full ban on online junk food marketing will work.” – Chris Macey