SEVEN out of 10 parents in Scotland have been badgered by their children to buy junk food they have seen advertised on television, according to a new survey by the British Heart Foundation.
The BHF said it is calling for the UK Government to introduce tighter restrictions online and ban junk food adverts being shown before the 9pm watershed to protect children from making unhealthy choices.
It said the research shows regulation is weak and that the need for the system to be overhauled is urgent with more than a quarter of children in Scotland currently overweight or obese.
Overweight children are more likely to become obese as adults, putting them at greater risk of a coronary heart disease, stroke and some cancers in later life.
Research by broadcasting regulator Ofcom found television advertising can impact on children's food preferences, consumption and behaviour, and that younger children in particular cannot distinguish advertising from entertainment.
Mike Hobday, director of policy at the British Heart Foundation, said Westminster should take the lead in tackling policies that risk children's future health.
He said: "Regulations for television and online advertising in the UK are weak.
"Loopholes in the system mean that every day millions of children are exposed to sophisticated marketing techniques specifically designed to lure them into unhealthy eating habits.
"This evidence shows that junk food ads are having a detrimental impact on children's behaviour and are hindering parents' efforts to get their children to eat healthily.
"We cannot allow companies to continue exploiting holes in the system at the expense of our children's health.
"The UK Government must act now to help give children a stronger chance at fending off future heart disease."
The health champion polled over 2,100 parents with children aged 16 and under and found more than two fifths (42 per cent) of parents in Scotland with children aged four to 16 say they are pestered by their children at least once a week.
More than two in five (43 per cent) parents surveyed in Scotland also said they think junk food adverts make it difficult to help their children eat a healthy diet.
The BHF believes that the research highlights the need to close what it said are legal loopholes in the UK's regulatory system which mean companies are free to promote unhealthy food and drink products to children both online and on television during popular family shows.
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