Trends in the Extent and Nature of Food Advertising Targeted to Children and Adolescents in Uganda (The FACe-U project protocol)
 
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1
Makerere University School of Public Health, “New Mulago Hill Road, Mulago, P. O. Box 7072, Kampala”, Uganda
 
2
Institute of Tropical Medicine, Department of Public Health, Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM), “Doornstraat 331, 2610 Wilrijk”, Belgium
 
3
Sciensano, Belgian Institute Health, Brussels, “Rue Juliette Wytsmanstraat 14, 1050 Brussels, Belgium”, Belgium
 
4
Makerere University School of Social Sciences, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
 
5
African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), “APHRC Campus, Manga Close, Kirawa Road, P. O. Box 10787-00100, Nairobi, Kenya
 
 
Publication date: 2023-04-26
 
 
Popul. Med. 2023;5(Supplement):A1474
 
ABSTRACT
Introduction:
A major driver of the rising childhood obesity in Uganda is an unhealthy food environment arising partially from an increase in advertising of unhealthy food. This project aims to examine the trends in the extent and nature of food and beverage advertisement to young children and adolescents (2- 18 years) in Uganda.

Materials and Methods:
Mixed-methods study design involving a first secondary retrospective content analysis of national data from media monitoring (television, radio, and newspapers) from October 2018 to September 2019. Recorded data from 8 randomly selected days (four weekdays and four weekend days) in each of the four advertising seasons will be sampled from the top three national television and radio stations, plus the three most-read newspapers in the three study regions. Second, primary data is collected from 427 households with children (under 18 years) in 2022/3, using semi-structured questionnaires for self-reported consumption of the food items identified in the first phase and anthropometric measurements. Further, stakeholder attitudes, perceptions, and experiences with food advertising towards children will be captured using standardized International Network for Obesity Research Management and Action Support tools. The WHO Nutrient Profile model for the African region will be used to classify advertised foods into permitted/not permitted to marketing to children; and the NOVA system to classify foods into four groups: unprocessed/minimally processed foods, processed culinary ingredients, processed foods, and ultra-processed foods. Rates and trends of food advertising to children by type of food will be studied. Makerere University School of Public Health Research and Ethics Committee and the National Council for Science and Technology approved this study.

Results (Anticipated Benefits):
The study findings will inform government policy priority actions to create healthy food environments that reduce childhood obesity risk.

ISSN:2654-1459
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