Athlete Endorsements in Food Marketing

A new article in Pediatrics reports that 100 athletes endorsed 512 brands in 2010.  Food and beverages constituted 23.8% of these endorsements. Seventy-nine percent of the 62 food products in these athlete-endorsed advertisements were energy-dense and nutrient poor; and 96.4 % of the 46 advertised beverages had 100% of their calories from added sugar.  Peyton Manning and LeBron James had the most endorsements for energy-dense, nutrient poor products.