### Are Packaged Foods with Popular Characters Less Healthy for Kids? A recent Canadian study suggests that packaged foods for children featuring popular characters on the box are likely less healthy than those without such eye-catching labels. Researchers from the University of Toronto examined the relationship between nutrient composition and marketing power. They analyzed the design and nutrition data of 5,850 child-relevant packaged foods listed in a 2017 Canadian database. The study found that 13% of these foods had child-appealing marketing and were significantly more likely to be poor in nutritional quality. These foods often had high sugar content and low levels of essential nutrients. The findings were published in the journal PLOS One. Study author Christine Mulligan, PhD, noted that many products in grocery stores are heavily marketed to children but are often very unhealthy. Public health officials worldwide are concerned about rising childhood health problems related to poor nutrition, such as obesity and diabetes. The researchers called for government regulations to limit marketing that targets children on food packaging, emphasizing that protecting children from unhealthy marketing should be a priority.