• Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
  • CCPA
  • Medical Disclaimer
Thursday, June 8, 2023
McLennan County News
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Technology
    • Crytpocurrency
    • Gaming
    • Gadgets
  • Sports
  • Health
  • General
    • Business Services
  • Travel
  • Press Releases
  • Popular
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Business
  • Technology
    • Crytpocurrency
    • Gaming
    • Gadgets
  • Sports
  • Health
  • General
    • Business Services
  • Travel
  • Press Releases
  • Popular
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home Technology Gaming

Junk Food Ads Reaching Kids Through Livestream Gaming Platforms – HealthDay News

junk-food-ads-reaching-kids-through-livestream-gaming-platforms-–-healthday-news
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

THURSDAY, Dec. 16, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Children and teens who use livestreaming gaming platforms may be bombarded with influencer-endorsed ads for energy drinks, junk food and alcohol, new research shows.

“This type of marketing can normalize high-fat, high-sugar and high-sodium foods at a time in young viewers’ lives when they’re developing eating habits that are going to follow them into adulthood,” said Caitlyn Edwards, a postdoctoral scholar of nutritional sciences at Penn State University.

“We saw an increase, for example, in alcohol branding, which could normalize the idea that alcohol consumption needs to be a regular thing in a viewership that is still underage,” Edwards warned in a school news release.

Livestreaming platforms like Twitch, Facebook Gaming and YouTube Gaming are relatively new but already extremely popular. For example, Twitch says more than 30 million people engage on its platform each day. Almost a quarter of accounts on the Twitch platform belong to people ages 13-17.

On these platforms, users can watch and communicate with gamers as they play video games in real time, as well as chat with other viewers. Once gamers get large enough followings, they may be asked by companies to promote their products as part of a sponsorship.

In this study, Edwards and her colleagues looked at more than 300 food and beverage products with high rates of marketing on social media platforms. The products were divided into six categories: alcohol, candy, energy drinks, processed snacks, soda and restaurants.

Energy drinks accounted for the vast majority (74%) of products advertised, followed by ads for restaurants, soda, processed snacks, alcohol and candy.

What’s more, these ads increased substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the study. The results were recently published in the journal Public Health Nutrition.

“When an influencer is promoting a product, there’s interaction happening between the influencer and their viewers that isn’t there with traditional print or visual ads,” said Travis Masterson, director of the Health, Ingestive Behavior, and Technology Lab at Penn State.

“Because viewers feel like they have a relationship with the influencers, they may be more willing to buy these products as a way to help their influencers succeed and make money from these sponsorships,” Masterson said in the release.

The study findings show it’s important for parents to know what their children are being exposed to on livestreaming platforms like Twitch, as well as the possible need for regulation, according to the researchers.

“Regulation of food marketing in the U.S. is essentially nonexistent and tends to lag far behind new forms of technology and media,” Masterson said. “But it’s something that could be considered, especially since there’s a high number of young viewers on these platforms and prior research has found that food ad exposure among youth can affect changes in consumption.”

More information

The American Academy of Family Physicians has more on energy drinks.

SOURCE: Penn State University, news release, Dec. 13, 2021

McLennan County News

© 2021 McLennan County News Online

Navigate Site

  • Disclosure
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
  • CCPA
  • Medical Disclaimer

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • DMCA Policy
  • Medical Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure
  • CCPA
  • Terms of Use

© 2021 McLennan County News Online

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT