Healthy eating under peer pressure

Peer pressure and bullying are pushing children away from healthy foods such as fruit and vegetables and into processed snacks, a study has claimed.

The report by children’s charity Barnardo’s said the food and drink youngsters consume categorises them in the eyes of their peers in the same way as music and clothes.

Stereotyped attitudes in some cases are so strong that children cannot entertain the idea of boys eating salads.

Researchers found that children presented with a picture of a lunch containing a sandwich, raw carrot, tomato, milk and apple found it impossible to imagine anyone their age choosing to eat the meal.

Meanwhile a photo of a burger, chips and fizzy drink was considered appealing by the vast majority of children.