Outdoor and in-store food advertising: food and health-related advertisements in neighbourhoods of low- and middle-socioeconomic status in Stockholm, Sweden
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Aims: This study examined the prevalence of outdoor and in-store food and health-related advertisements, and whether their distribution differed by neighbourhood socioeconomic status (SES) in Stockholm, Sweden. Methods: A cross-sectional observational design was employed using EPOCH—an adapted tool with pre-defined categories to collect data on outdoor and in-store advertising in 10 lower-SES and 12 middle-SES neighbourhoods in Stockholm. Outdoor advertisement distributions were compared between SES categories using the Mann–Whitney U test, while in-store advertisement counts were analysed using regression models tailored to outcome distributions. Results: Most advertisements featured energy-dense, nutrient-poor (EDNP) foods and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs)—59 percent of outdoor advertisements and 65 percent of in-store advertisements. Although differences in the prevalence of outdoor and in-store advertisements were noted between low- and middle-SES neighbourhoods, these associations were not statistically significant following correction for multiple testing. Conclusion: Across all neighbourhoods, advertisements were dominated by unhealthy products, particularly EDNP foods and SSBs. Similar levels of exposure in low- and middle-SES neighbourhoods suggest that neighbourhood SES is not a key predictor of advertising patterns in Stockholm. These findings highlight a widespread exposure to unhealthy food advertising, underscoring the need for public health strategies to address environmental drivers of diet-related outcomes.
Institutions: Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet, University of Greenwich
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $4,400
OpenAlex ID: W7147586410