Hoy and Beckham among athletes rapped for ads selling fatty, sugary food

SPORTS stars including the Olympic gold medal winning cyclist Sir Chris Hoy and footballer David Beckham were yesterday criticised for promoting foods with a high sugar content.

Sir Chris and Beckham were among a number of celebrities singled out by the Food Commission for endorsing products that were high in sugar, salt or fat.

The commission conducted a survey of celebrity-endorsed foods, revealing more than 25 stars had their "brand" linked to foods and drink of the type that the medical journal Lancet said they should be ashamed to promote.

Sir Chris, who won three gold medals at Beijing, was named for endorsing Kellogg's Bran Flakes, which the commission said had a high sugar content. And Beckham, the former England captain and AC Milan midfielder, was targeted for advertising Pepsi, due to its sugar content.

Another celebrity in the firing line included the Olympic gold medallist Dame Kelly Holmes, for advertising a chocolate cereal.

The report said: "It is hard to believe that double Olympic gold medal winner Kelly Holmes ever woke up to Coco Pops Coco Rocks cereal, but she has had her face on the box as part of Kellogg's Wake up to Breakfast campaign.

"Perhaps David Beckham wore off the 55g of sugar calories in the half litre Pepsi he promoted during his extensive training sessions – but it won't prove so easy for your average office worker or schoolchild."

The UK governments run campaigns to encourage reductions in the consumption of salt and saturated fat and its own dietary surveys show many people eat too much sugar.

The commission said every product in the survey would be banned under Ofcom guidance from advertising during certain television programmes of particular interest to child audiences due to their poor nutritional quality.

A spokeswoman from the Food Commission said: "We want to see well-known actors, sports people, musicians and celebrity chefs refusing to promote foods of poor nutritional quality.

"It is sad to see someone of the stature of Sir Chris Hoy or Dame Kelly Holmes promoting a high-sugar breakfast cereal. There is really no excuse for it and the people in our survey should all know better."

The commission now plans to run its own ads with famous faces who refuse to sign up to sell unhealthy products.

The Oscar-winning actor Emma Thompson told the commission: "A contract or petition would be a good thing and I'd certainly sign up. There's so much rubbish out there and it appalls me that we are used to sell it."

Jessica Mitchell, director of the Food Commission, said: "I wish more celebrities would follow Emma Thompson's example. It doesn't seem too much to ask that they use their influence more positively rather than just to line their own pockets. Maybe we would all be eating our five a day, rather than barely three, if the humble apple or cabbage had the advertising budget devoted to sugar and saturated fat."

Jane Landon, deputy chief executive of the National Heart Forum, said: "Following the introduction of the Ofcom rules on food and drink advertising to children on TV, the number of food ads featuring celebrities has fallen during children's programming.

"But the number of celebrity food ads at other times of day has apparently increased which means that children's overall exposure is still high.

"Celebrity ads usually combine familiarity, aspiration and humour – all highly appealing to children, and advertisers know this is an extremely successful recipe."

A spokesman for Sir Chris declined to comment when contacted by The Scotsman last night.