New Rules to Protect Children from Junk Food Ads and Tackle Childhood Obesity

From 5 January 2026, new regulations will ban adverts for less healthy food and drink on television and online, a major public health step aimed at reducing childhood obesity and creating healthier food environments for young people.

Evidence shows that advertising is a powerful influence on children’s eating habits, shaping their preferences and mealtime behaviour, and contributing to obesity, tooth decay and related health conditions.

Under the new rules, television advertising for foods high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) will be banned before 9pm, when many children are watching their favourite programmes. At the same time, paid online junk food advertising will be banned entirely, meaning companies will no longer be able to promote HFSS products through the digital spaces children and young people use most, including social media and streaming platforms.

The UK government estimates that these advertising restrictions could remove up to 7.2 billion calories from children’s diets every year, prevent around 20,000 cases of childhood obesity, and deliver approximately £2 billion in long-term health benefits.

In announcing the ban, Health Minister Ashley Dalton highlighted the government’s commitment to giving children the best possible start in life, making the healthy choice the easy choice for families, and shifting the focus of the NHS and public health policy from treatment to prevention.

SOURCE: GOV.UK