The Children’s Commissioner has called for an end to social media advertising for appearance-changing products targeting children.
Dame Rachel de Souza said children were routinely exposed online to products that claimed to change their bodies and appearance, including weight loss injections, skin lightening products and steroids.
Some 78% of children said the ads had a negative impact on their self-esteem, with 41% of 13- to 17-year-olds seeing promotions for prescription-only weight loss drugs, despite a ban on advertising, a new report has found.
Dame Rachel’s report, A healthy influence? Children’s exposure to appearance-changing products online, also found that 54% of children had seen exercise and diet plans and 52% had seen ads for food and drink products for weight loss.
Many children had also seen ads for skin lightening products online, including 46% of black children and 35% of Asian children, compared to 24% of white children. Many of these products are illegal in the UK because they contain toxic ingredients.
Dame Rachel is calling for an end to all advertising to children on social media by amending the Online Safety Act and changing Ofcom’s Children’s Code of Practice to explicitly protect children from body stigma content.
Dame Rachel has proposed strengthening the regulation of online sales of age-restricted products. Pic: PA
She has also proposed strengthening the regulation of online sales of age-restricted products.
“Childhood is a short and precious time, but it is undeniable that children today are facing pressures like never before, with too many children growing up in an online world that takes advantage of their insecurities and tells them they are not good enough as they are,” she…
