Foods categorised as “less healthy” by the government include fast food, soft drinks, ready meals, pastries, cereal bars, and sweetened yoghurts.

The move follows a National Health Service (NHS) report highlighting rising childhood obesity rates in the UK. Nearly one in 10 reception-aged children (9.2%) are classified as obese, and around 23.7% of five-year-olds suffer from tooth decay due to excessive sugar consumption, according to NHS data.

BBC quoted Health Secretary Wes Streeting as saying that the policy was “the first step to deliver a major shift in the focus of healthcare from sickness to prevention, and towards meeting our government’s ambition to give every child a healthy, happy start to life.”

What are the other foods are included?

The UK government has expanded its list of foods classified as “less healthy,” banning daytime advertisements for items high in sugar, fat, and salt content. This includes popular breakfast options like croissants, pancakes, waffles, and sugary cereals such as granola, muesli, and instant porridge. Sweetened yoghurts, fizzy drinks, certain fruit juices, energy drinks, and snacks like lentil crisps, seaweed-based treats, and Bombay mix are also on the restricted list. Traditional hamburgers and chicken nuggets are included as well.

However, healthier alternatives such as natural porridge oats and unsweetened yoghurt remain exempt from the restrictions.

The government aims to prevent approximately 20,000 cases of childhood obesity annually through these measures. Health Secretary Wes Streeting stressed the urgency of the initiative, stating, “Obesity robs our kids of the best possible start in life, sets them up for a lifetime of health problems, and costs the NHS billions. This government is taking action now to end the targeting of junk food ads at kids, across both TV and online.”

The BBC report said that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson initially proposed a ban on pre-9.00 PM TV ads for foods high in sugar, salt, and fat in 2021, but its implementation was postponed to 2025 to allow the food and drink industry time to adjust amid the cost-of-living crisis.

The government estimates this legislation will remove 7.2 billion calories from children’s diets annually, significantly contributing to reducing obesity rates in the UK.