Does Advertising on Television Cause Childhood Obesity? A Longitudinal Analysis
这项纵向分析发现，电视观看对7岁及以上儿童的肥胖有正向影响，但广告并非主要原因，因为商业电视与非商业电视的效果无显著差异。
Numerous studies finding a relationship between children's television viewing and obesity have led many to argue that advertising “unhealthy” food products causes children to adopt eating habits that lead to obesity. This longitudinal analysis of the relationship between television viewing and childhood obesity finds a positive effect in children aged seven years and older but not in younger children. Adding controls for the household environment created by the children's parents reduces the size of this effect. If advertising is the causal mechanism for the relationship, watching programming on television should have a greater effect than watching similar programming on video or DVDs. We find no significant difference in the effects of viewing commercial versus noncommercial television. Moreover, we generally find no significant differences between watching programming for the same intended audience on television or on video. These results suggest that restrictions on advertising may play a limited role in the battle against childhood obesity. Research is needed on the determinants of children's television viewing and how those factors may influence dietary choices.