A new international review has shed light on the extensive and often subtle ways that social media platforms expose children and teenagers to ultra-processed food marketing, raising serious concerns about its impact on youth health and global childhood obesity trends.
Published in BMJ Global Health in February 2025, the study highlights how the digital environment is saturated with advertisements for foods high in sugar, salt and fat. These ads, frequently integrated into entertainment content, are designed to be persuasive and often go unnoticed by young audiences. From breakfast cereals and cookies to soft drinks and fast food, unhealthy food promotions are a constant presence in kids’ online lives.
The report examines 80 previous studies involving nearly 20,000 children and teens and shows a strong link between exposure to digital food ads and increased consumption of unhealthy foods. Children not only crave these items more but also pressure their parents into buying them. One study cited revealed that junk food promoted by influencers notably increased immediate food consumption among children aged 9 to 11, unlike healthy food promotions, which had little impact.
Unlike traditional media, social platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Instagram tailor content using algorithms based on user behavior. Ads are cleverly disguised within games, quizzes and videos, making them difficult for young users to identify as marketing.The researchers noted,
Digital marketing strategies are nearly universally effective in shaping young people’s eating habits and encouraging the consumption of unhealthy foods.
Social media as a commercial determinant of health
The review adds to growing evidence that social media functions as a commercial determinant of health (CDoH), comparable to industries like tobacco and alcohol. These platforms not only facilitate food marketing but also shift public perception and promote corporate agendas.
In the U.S., over 95% of teens have access to a smartphone, and more than a third report near-constant social media use. In the U.K., most children have a phone by age 11, and even children as young as five to seven are active online. Australia recently introduced a ban on social media use for children under 16, reflecting rising concerns.
Researchers note that just like other health-harming industries, the food sector uses social media to resist regulation, co-opt health language, and reshape public discourse. For instance, Australian studies found that processed food companies actively lobbied against public health policies on Twitter while pushing for voluntary measures and using misleading narratives.
This review is the first to focus on how these marketing tactics target youth, deepening health inequalities and contributing to rising rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes and heart disease.
Youth flooded with food ads daily
The research team, made up of experts from the U.K., Canada, and New Zealand, analyzed 36 studies and editorials published between 2000 and May 2023. They found that exposure to digital food marketing differs by country, age, and gender.
For instance:
- In Mexico, children were shown an average of 2.7 food ads per hour on weekdays.
- Australian teens were exposed to roughly 168 food promotions weekly via mobile devices.
- In Canada, 72% of youth ages 7-16 saw food marketing within 10 minutes of opening their favorite apps. Of all food ads on popular children’s sites, over 93% promoted high-fat, salty, or sugary products.
Boys were more often targeted with ads centered around sports and performance, while girls received more interactive content, such as quizzes and polls. The platforms often gather and sell user data to companies that harm public health, further complicating efforts to track or regulate ad exposure.
Teenagers, in particular, face the greatest risk, with many studies pointing to a correlation between food marketing, poor body image, and disordered eating patterns. Brands also quickly adapt their marketing strategies to current events. During the COVID-19 pandemic, 14 of the top 20 unhealthy food brands in New Zealand released pandemic-themed promotions to stay relevant.
WHO and researchers call for stronger regulation
The World Health Organization (WHO) has long warned that aggressive food marketing negatively affects children’s dietary habits. In 2023, it urged countries to adopt strict mandatory rules to shield children from advertisements promoting foods high in sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats.
The current review echoes that call, emphasizing that voluntary industry standards have largely failed. Many current policies don’t reflect the complexities of digital advertising or cover adolescents, who are heavy users of online platforms but often fall outside regulatory definitions of “children.”
In the U.S., regulatory challenges are compounded by First Amendment protections of commercial speech, limiting the government’s ability to restrict harmful marketing practices. Tech companies are even pushing back against state-level efforts—such as Florida’s social media age restriction law — designed to better protect minors.
Researchers stress that traditional rules designed for TV and print media won’t work in today’s digital ecosystem. Instead, they advocate for updated approaches tailored to social media’s unique environment.
Key recommendations from the study:
- Define what counts as child-targeted marketing in digital spaces
- Coordinate internationally to close legal and regulatory gaps
- Introduce mandatory restrictions on unhealthy food ads targeting minors
- Implement media literacy programs to build youth awareness
- Establish better tracking systems for monitoring digital ad exposure
While parental involvement is vital — particularly in teaching children how to recognize and question digital marketing — the authors say structural reform is essential.
“Parents and caregivers should push for policy change,” the study concludes. “Social media is deeply woven into young people’s daily lives, and recognizing the health risks posed by the digital food environment is essential to improving outcomes for children and teens globally.”
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Source: “Social media is fueling the childhood obesity crisis, global study warns,” U.S. Right to Know, 4/8/25
Source: “The impact of the social media industry as a commercial determinant of health on the digital food environment for children and adolescents: a scoping review,” BMJ Global Health, 2/19/25
Source: “Teens and Internet, Device Access Fact Sheet,” Pew Research Center, 01/05/24
Image by Tim Gouw/Pexels
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