Fat Free TV: find out what they're feeding your kids

Do you worry about the multitude of messages that our children are subjected to within the shows that they watch on TV? My Mini G is still a toddler so his viewing is restricted to ABC2 and the occasional movie so the number of advertising messages he is receiving is minimal. 

However, I am all too aware of the hidden dangers within some of our prime time family viewing. In fact I was shocked to discover that some of what is marketed as healthy viewing is in fact packed with as many junk food messages as possible. Did you know that the food industry spends hundreds of millions of dollars to blitz children with junk food advertising?

More frightening is the fact that this type of marketing can lead to childhood obesity, and with one in four Australian children overweight or obese we need to be proactive as parents if we want to ensure that our children do not remain overweight or obese into adulthood. Around 80% of these overweight children will remain that way as adults.

In 2008, more than 30,000 cancer cases were linked to overweight and obesity...this statistic gives me shivers and motivates me to lead by example and also be ever vigilant in my role as Mother. Initiatives such as Fat Free TV can greatly assist us as parents on our mission to raise healthy children who have the best possible start in life and all the guidance that they need to reach their full potential.

Fat Free TV helps parents understand just how much junk food advertising TV stations are feeding to our children. Beyond just listing the most unhealthy shows on TV the site also shows how much energy, saturated fat, sugar and salt your children would be getting if they ate just one serving of everything they saw advertised on the average program.

Take a few minutes to check that the shows your children are watching are not contributing to an unhealthy generation...as parents we really can't afford not to be proactive about this. Here are the shows that have been identified as the Top 10 fattiest of all that were assessed, any surprises?

Personally I was horrified to see Junior Masterchef on this list, for obvious reasons I just assumed that a show of this nature clearly aimed at families, would be filled with positive messages and good examples of raising healthy children?

As a passionate advocate and ex employee of Cancer Council NSW I am so grateful for this amazing resource as a parent who is committed to the wellbeing of my precious Mini Ginger.