[Rocol]

Eating a packet of crisps a day is equal to drinking almost five litres of cooking oil every year, health campaigners have warned.

The British Heart Foundation figures will come as a shock to the parents of half the UK's children who polish off the snacks on a daily basis.

They were released as the BHF launches the second phase of its Food4Thought campaign ahead of World Heart Day this Sunday.

Food4Thought aims to expose the amounts of hidden salt, fat and sugar that lurk within many common snacks, takeaways and ready meals.

A shocking new advertising campaign will feature a young girl drinking from a bottle of cooking oil, with the caption "What goes into crisps goes into you".

Around 2,500 schools across the UK will also be sent teaching resources in the shape of over-sized burger boxes, in a bid to make children more aware of the potential damage that certain foods can do to their hearts.

Professor Peter Weissberg, BHF Medical Director, said: "The BHF believes having a daily dose of such a high-fat, nutritionally poor product is a threat to children's long-term health.

"Daily unhealthy snacking is a worrying habit. Rising rates of childhood obesity and cases of type 2 diabetes paint a particularly grim picture for the future.

"The BHF wants to expose the truth lurking within these foods and to help children and parents make healthier choices."

The Food4Thought campaign has attracted support from celebrities like the pop group Sugababes, actress Fay Ripley and Premiership footballers Anton Ferdinand and Theo Walcott.

A recent BHF survey of 8-15 year olds revealed that one in five children munch their way through at least two packets of crisps per day - the equivalent of nine litres of cooking oil a year.

The industry body the Food and Drink Federation described the British Heart Foundation's campaign as "scare tactics".

FDF Communications Director Julian Hunt said: "We welcome anything that raises the debate about diet, but scare tactics are a waste of time.

"One of the great things about our industry is that we strive to give consumers genuine choice, whether it is a better for you version or a completely reformulated standard product."

Lol, these boffins will not settle untill we are all munching lettuce leaves .. I am not a big crisp fan anyway, so it won't affect me, but I don't believe half of what they say is the truth. They are always the same, if they find out that someone enjoys something, they come up with 1001 reasons why you shouldn't have it.