Jennifer Harris

Summary Background Child health experts raise numerous concerns about the negative effects of children's exposure to unhealthy digital food marketing, including advertising and branded product placements on child‐oriented videos. Objectives YouTube banned food advertising on “made‐for‐kids” channels in 2020, but research is needed to assess food‐related appearances on increasingly popular child‐influencer videos. Methods Content analysis examined a sample of videos ( n = 400) uploaded in 2019–2020 by popular child‐influencers on YouTube “made‐for‐kids” channels. We identified and coded all branded and non‐branded food‐related appearances (i.e., food, beverages, restaurants), ads, promotions, and sponsorship disclosures, and compared 2019 to 2020. Results Two‐thirds of videos ( n = 260) had at least one food‐related appearance, including branded product appearances ( n = 153), other brand appearances ( n = 60), and non‐branded food‐related appearances ( n = 203). Branded products appeared 592 times (M = 3.9/video), including candy brands (42% of appearances) and sweet/salty snacks, sugary drinks, and ice cream (32% combined). Total food‐related appearances did not change (2019–2020), but candy brand appearances increased significantly. Videos with non‐branded healthy food category appearances also increased, but 70% also showed unhealthy branded and/or unbranded foods. Just one video disclosed a food‐brand sponsorship. Conclusions Additional policies are needed to protect young children from potential exposure to unhealthy branded foods on popular YouTube child‐influencer channels.