What does gaming have to do with energy drinks? What influence do influencers have on young people’s eating habits? Our new brochure on social media and obesity among children and young people answers these and many other questions.

The new brochure was produced in collaboration with Fonds Gesundes Österreich (FGÖ) and the EU initiative PreventNCD. It highlights the significant influence social media has on young people’s eating habits and the role parents and carers can play in this.

“Children and young people today are exposed to an enormous amount of digital influences – including in the area of nutrition. This makes it all the more important to provide reliable information and guidance,” explains Johannes Pleiner-Duxneuner, Managing Director of AGES.

In influencer videos, gaming streams or on platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, unhealthy foods have long since become the norm. Around a quarter of the content shared there relates to food, the majority of which is high in calories, fat, salt and sugar. At the same time, only around three per cent of this content is labelled as advertising.

This ubiquity influences what children perceive as ‘normal’ when it comes to food: following exposure to such advertising, children and young people consume on average around 30 per cent more calories. The risk of becoming overweight in younger children increases from as little as around 60 minutes of daily media use. Images of unhealthy foods also activate regions of the brain responsible for reward, attention and decision-making more strongly than images of healthy alternatives. Advertising for healthy foods does not produce this effect.

How influencing works in the food sector

Influencing works, on the one hand, in obvious ways, such as by promoting products or sharing discount codes; on the other hand, however, it also works subtly and inconspicuously when influencers seemingly casually reach for energy drinks or sugary fizzy drinks, often without children and young people recognising this as advertising.

Influencers enjoy a high level of trust within their communities. Many young people believe recommendations because the individuals are well-known or have a large following, and they form a strong emotional bond with them. Often, however, these recommendations are simply product advertising. A mere label such as ‘advertisement’ is not enough to protect children and young people. Studies show that children actually eat more of the advertised snack after seeing posts with labelled advertising than they do without such a label.

Shaped early – hard to change: what parents and carers can do

Eating habits and taste preferences develop very early in life. Once unhealthy patterns are established, they are difficult to change. This makes it all the more important to encourage healthy eating habits from an early age.
Parents have a decisive influence on their children’s eating habits: through their own example, through the food they buy and make available at home, and through discussions about advertising and social media. Children usually have only limited influence over their eating environment. This makes it all the more important to raise parents’ awareness and encourage them to promote healthy eating and media literacy as early as possible.

The booklet “Social Media, Advertising and Nutrition in Children and Young People” supports parents and carers in this regard with background information, concrete examples and practical tips. It is now available online at: Advertising, Social Media and Trends: Nutrition in the Everyday Lives of Children and Young People