TEENAGERS who watch several hours of television on a school day are consuming worrying amounts of chips, chocolate and high-energy caffeine drinks, an Australian study has found.
The survey of more than 18,000 students aged between 12 and 17, to be published today in the journal Health Promotion International, found that 55 per cent of teenagers who watched more than three hours of television each day reported drinking high-energy drinks more than four times a week and 61 per cent were eating snack foods more than four times a week, compared with 38 per cent and 46 per cent for those watching less than two hours a day.
The study also found that only one in five was eating enough vegetables and only two in five were eating sufficient fruit.
The chief executive of the Cancer Council Australia, Professor Ian Olver, said the survey supported evidence that child obesity had doubled since 1985.
He said governments should take note of the results and focus on strategies to combat child obesity, including a ban on junk food advertising.
"We know that about 75 per cent of overweight or obese teenagers become overweight or obese adults," he said. "It would be far more cost-effective … to address this problem where it starts - with children."
The study's author, Dr Victoria White, from the Cancer Council Victoria, said it highlighted the need for students to exercise more. "We found that only 14 per cent engaged in recommended [physical activity] levels," she said.
The survey of more than 18,000 students aged between 12 and 17, to be published today in the journal Health Promotion International, found that 55 per cent of teenagers who watched more than three hours of television each day reported drinking high-energy drinks more than four times a week and 61 per cent were eating snack foods more than four times a week, compared with 38 per cent and 46 per cent for those watching less than two hours a day.
The study also found that only one in five was eating enough vegetables and only two in five were eating sufficient fruit.
The chief executive of the Cancer Council Australia, Professor Ian Olver, said the survey supported evidence that child obesity had doubled since 1985.
He said governments should take note of the results and focus on strategies to combat child obesity, including a ban on junk food advertising.
"We know that about 75 per cent of overweight or obese teenagers become overweight or obese adults," he said. "It would be far more cost-effective … to address this problem where it starts - with children."
The study's author, Dr Victoria White, from the Cancer Council Victoria, said it highlighted the need for students to exercise more. "We found that only 14 per cent engaged in recommended [physical activity] levels," she said.
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