It was recently reported by Martens and Schneider (Guardian, 2009) that billions of pounds are spent every day by junk food companies to persuade children to consume their products . Furthermore, an American study shows that during Saturday mornings, when children are more likely to watch, one commercial is shown every eight minutes and this is considered an alarming rate (Bell, 2009). Should the government allow these companies to advertise their products on television during children's shows? Some people agree that these companies should be allowed to do this since it is a way to make profits and is completely legal. However, a large percentage of people believe that allowing these companies and corporations to advertise their products in the media can lead to serious consequences for children, such as obesity, non-nutritional eating habits, and other problems within individual families . Food advertising should be banned during children's programs is that it could lead to childhood obesity, which is thought to be linked to the amount of adverts watched. This fact could be illustrated by the notable increase in the rate of overweight children which was 13% among those aged 6 to 10 years and 14% among those aged 12 to 19 years in the last thirty years which obviously they faced a significant increase in the rate of advertising (ScienceDaily, 2008). Since most advertised products are high in fat and sugar, consuming this food is likely to cause obesity. Many people believe that banning these commercials would reduce the rate of overweight children. Additionally, a new study conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research says that banning fast food advertising is... middle of paper... the biggest casualty of these commercials. If the government does not take action regarding this issue by banning this type of marketing, children would face many problems especially in later years. Furthermore, these advertisements would influence different aspects of children's lives such as health, habits and relationships within families. Furthermore, advertising could also lead to a change in the value that children acquire during their early years. It is believed that an extreme ban would improve the overall health of children. It is also seen as a way to encourage young people to eat healthy foods and to help them distinguish between the advertising message and other programs. Recent statistics show very alarming rates associated with this problem. For this reason, the authorities should ban these advertisements and take into account the health and future of children.