Before most kids can spell “nutrition,” they’ve already seen thousands of advertisements for candy-colored cereal, salty snacks and sugary soda.
According to a 2024 study, children between the ages of 2 and 11 watch more than 1,000 food and beverage commercials per year. To promote their products to younger audiences, advertisers typically use bright colors, catchy jingles and singing mascots.
Remember Tony the Tiger? These characters stick with kids long after the ad is over.
The food industry spends nearly $14 billion on commercial advertising, much of it aimed at hooking young viewers on their products.
How food chemicals harm kids’ focus and health
And the ads may contribute to unhealthy eating habits and long-term health risks.
The foods they promote are often high in calories and sugar but low in nutritional value – products that can be classified as ultra-processed food, or UPF. They also often contain a range of harmful chemicals linked to behavioral issues, hormone disruption and potential cancer risk, including additives such as Red Dye No. 40, Yellow Dye No. 5, BHA and BHT.
Research shows that more screen time per day leads to consuming more sweetened beverages, fast food and candy, contributing to a higher overall calorie intake and harms, including cardiovascular disease, obesity, Type 2 diabetes and dental decay.
What kids eat when they sit down in the school cafeteria might undermine their ability to learn, focus and thrive.
The bright colors in food ads mask a darker problem: Many of the food additives and dyes are linked to neurobehavioral issues.
In 2021, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment released a groundbreaking study linking synthetic food dyes to neurobehavioral problems in children, including worsened ADHD symptoms, learning delays and decreased classroom performance.
States take action
The problem isn’t just the lack of restrictions on corporate access to kids. It’s also a failure on the part of the Food and Drug Administration, which allows many food chemicals for use in food without safety review.
Some states are starting to pick up the slack. Lawmakers in a number of states have introduced bills targeting harmful food chemicals, including the additives found in products widely featured in advertising, like cereal, beverages and candy.
The California School Food Safety Act, signed into law in 2024, bans six harmful food dyes from being served in public schools.
It followed a 2023 state law banning the manufacture, distribution or sale of food containing the chemicals Red Dye No. 3, propyl paraben, brominated vegetable oil and potassium bromate.
In California, the bipartisan Assembly Bill 1264 aims to ban the most harmful ultra-processed foods in public schools by 2032. If signed into law, it would task scientists with identifying “particularly harmful UPF,” which may include foods high in sugar, salt and fat. Or it could be that they have links to behavioral, developmental and cognitive challenges.
And in 2025, West Virginia passed a law banning seven harmful food dyes, as well as propylparaben and BHA from all foods sold and produced in the state.
Steps toward healthier habits
Children and teens see fewer ads than they used to. Researchers found that total spending for televised food and beverage ads declined by 25 percent between 2017 and 2021.
But kids still inhabit a screen-saturated society where they’re seeing those ads, even at a reduced amount. That’s why parents, educators and policymakers need to stay informed about the influence of food marketing on children.
Use tools like EWG’s Food Scores and Dirty Dozen Guide to Food Chemicals to better understand what’s in the foods and snacks kids love. And teach children to spot advertising tricks and flashy branding, so they can make more informed decisions about their food choices, regardless of advertising influence.
