Author(s): Mark Keith Faraday, S Vijayalakshmi, Dr. S Vasantha, Kanchana T, Wilfred Lawrence

Abstract:
Television is still the dominant avenue for advertising food items. The television food related advertisements in India promotes fast food, sugary cereals and other food and beverages which are more in calories, fat, sugar, sodium and less in nutrients. In recent years the food and beverage industry in India has viewed children as a major target market. As a result food companies are interested in children as consumers since they watch television for long hours. This article aims to focus on how TV food advertisements pay attention to children. The impact of television food advertisements on children towards food purchasing requests is highlighted. Children who are exposed to TV advertisements are lured into making unhealthy food choices and develop poor eating behaviour. Since young children lack the ability to critically assess advertising messages and to understand their convincing intention, this paper focuses to incorporate, a positive approach to reduce the TV food and beverage advertisements on children and to emphasis the role of parents to limit television food advertising henceforth to create healthy eating preferences among children.