From: Valerie Lambert [bilou888@aol.com]
Sent: Sunday, September 15, 2002 9:03 PM
To: FDA Chief Counsel Daniel Troy
Subject: RE: FDA Docket # 02N-0209

Valerie Lambert
7027 Solomon Seal Court
Springfield, VA 22152-3152


September 15, 2002

Dear FDA Chief Counsel Troy:

On behalf of all US children, I urge you to implement stronger regulation 
of commercial advertising aimed at children.  The average US child sees 
more than 40,000 advertisements a year on TV alone, and food commercials 
account for most TV advertising during children's peak viewing hours. (On 
Saturday mornings, children see one food commercial about every five 
minutes.)  It is no wonder that childhood obesity, diabetes, and eating 
disorders (all serious public health issues for our kids) are linked to 
children's reaction to food advertising. From 1992 to 1999 the amount 
spent marketing to children shot from $6.2 billion to $12 billion. It is 
time for FDA to be much more assertive in regulating marketing aimed at 
children.  Such regulation poses no real threat to freedom to do business. 
We're still free, productive, capitalistic - and the biggest economy in 
the world -- even after 30 years of pollution regulation by the EPA. 
Chemical companies haven't gone out of business just because they can't 
dump carcinogens into Love Canals anymore. Consumers, government -- even 
chemical companies themselves - expect those companies to operate without 
blatantly threatening our health and well-being.  It's time to adopt the 
same attitude with the marketers who dump toxic messages and products into 
the stream of US childhood. It is past time that we hold advertisers 
accountable for their commercial exploitation of children.  It's only a 
matter of time before the vast majority of the public views these 
marketing messages to our children in similar way that people now see 
tobacco ads aimed at youth. The question is, do you want to be seen as 
following in the footsteps of the tobacco companies, responding to 
multiple lawsuits over knowingly risking the lives of our children...or 
would you rather be proactive and seen as opting for the ounce of 
prevention?


Sincerely,


Valerie Lambert