CHOICE is calling for a total ban on junk food advertising on television between 6am and 9pm to reduce rising rates of obesity among children.

The consumer advocacy body's proposed ban - echoed by the Cancer Council, Obesity Policy Coalition and the Parents Jury campaign - would prohibit all radio and TV ads for foods high in fat, sugar and salt between 6am and 9pm.

It would also like a ban on the use of celebrities, cartoon characters and free gifts which induce anyone under the age of 16 to eat certain foods.

A Sun-Herald analysis of free-to-air television found up to 15 commercials an hour are being broadcast for fast food outlets, chocolate and other unhealthy products during the afternoon and early evening - prime viewing slots for children.

All advertisements on channels Seven, Nine and Ten were monitored between 6am and 9pm last Thursday.

Seven had two high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) ads per hour, Ten more than three and Nine three ads per hour for the total time viewed.

But junk food advertising rose dramatically at times when children are most likely to be viewing.

Between 6pm and 7pm on Ten, when the programs broadcast were Friends followed by Neighbours, there were 15 junk food commercials, including five for KFC, and two each for Hungry Jacks, McDonald's, and Domino's Pizza.

On Seven between 7.15pm and 8.30pm, when Home And Away and The Amazing Race were broadcast, there were five HFSS ads, including Pizza Hut, KFC and Hungry Jacks.

One in four Australian children is now overweight or obese and experts have warned that the proportion of overweight youngsters could rise to 60 per cent in the next 30 years unless urgent action is taken.

Choice food policy officer Clare Hughes said: "Those findings are just amazing and really show why we need this ban. There is a complete imbalance in the advertisements being shown; they are not showing a balanced diet.

"Parents are trying to do what is right but we are making their lives harder by not having legislation on this issue."

There are currently no restrictions on the TV advertising of unhealthy foods to children other than an obligation not to mislead about the nutritional value of products.

During programs aimed at children under 14, total advertising time is restricted to a maximum of 13 minutes per hour and the same ad can only be shown a maximum of two times in any 30 minutes.

But there are no restrictions on other programs, many of which are hugely popular with younger audiences, such as Home And Away and Friends.

In the 12 months to June last year, $259.8million was spent on advertising food products on television - 10 per cent of the total spent on television advertising across all sectors.

The Australian Association of National Advertisers opposed the proposed Choice ban, saying there was no evidence to show that bans worked and that the existing regulations worked well.

A spokeswoman for the Health and Ageing Minister Nicola Roxon, said: "We are not looking at changing existing regulations right now. There is a review by Australian Communications and Media Authority due out later this year and we will be examining its findings."

Last year the UK introduced a ban on junk food advertising during programs primarily aimed at children under 10.

The ban is now being extended to children under the age of 16, with broadcasters given until the end of this year to phase in the restrictions.

Banning commercials 'may lift sales'

THERE is only a "weak link" between television commercials for junk food and increased consumption of such products, the Australian Association of National Advertisers says.

AANA executive director Collin Segelov said new research suggested banning TV ads might increase consumption because food companies would cut their prices as an alternative way to boost sales.

The London-based Frontier Economics group recently studied the impact of advertising bans on foods high in fat, salt and sugar ("HFSS" products). It said the link between advertising and consumption of HFSS foods was "thin" and concluded: "A ban on advertising forces companies to depend more on price competition and price cutting is likely to increase consumption."

A 2003 study by the US Bureau of Economic Research suggested a decrease in food price per calorie could explain most of the increase in the body mass index of the average American.

" I believe that a ban is too simplistic and wouldn't have any effect," Mr Segelov said. "If you ban ads during children's hours, TV companies will have to redirect funding from prime-time programming to keep up their legal commitment to providing quality children's programs.

"That means the quality of prime time will go down, so audiences will go down and there will be lower advertising there as well - it will create a vicious circle."

Mum's her own censor of junk food TV adverts

NICOLE KHUN restricts the TV programs that her two young children watch - not just because she wants them to be active but because junk food ads are so prevalent.

The 40-year old lives with her husband, six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter in Naremburn.

"I want my kids to grow up healthily and enjoy food, so I really restrict what they watch on television because there are so many junk food ads. I even got Foxtel because the channels there have fewer advertisements.

"The worst times are at weekends. We want to have a lie-in but the kids still get up early. They can turn the television on by themselves now but they won't automatically turn to the Foxtel channels, so you hear them go downstairs and you can hear the food ads come on - it's so annoying."

Mrs Khun backed the call by Choice for a total ban on radio and television advertising of foods high in sugar, salt and fat, as well as other marketing devices such as celebrity promotions and free toys.

"I would really love a ban. There is just so much advertising aimed at children and it creates enormous pester power," she said.

"Even though I don't take my kids to McDonald's my son knows about it.

"What annoys me is that even when you do something active with them, like sport, it's sponsored by all the fast food outlets.

"I do everything I can as a parent but a law would really help."