Gory images of burger rolls filled with bones and gristle are to appear across the UK to shock children into improving their diets and help fight obesity.

The British Heart Foundation's posters show common ingredients found in many burgers, chicken nuggets and hot dogs.

The Food4Thought campaign follows a survey by the charity showing 36% of eight to 14-year-olds did not know the main ingredient of chips was potato.

The BHF will also take a "policy pizza" to Tony Blair calling for more action.

The charity has enlisted the help of ITV sports presenter and mother Gaby Logan to deliver the list of actions it wants taken to boost children's health.

It includes calls for the marketing of unhealthy food and drink to be stopped.

It is estimated around 440,000 more UK children will become overweight or obese in the next two years, with a quarter of youngsters predicted to be overweight by 2020.

Nearly one in 10 of the children questioned for the BHF survey thought chips were made of oil, while others suggested eggs, apples and flour.

More than a third (37%) did not know cheese was mostly made of milk.

'Lost touch'

Peter Hollins, the BHF's director general, said: "It sends a shiver down my spine to discover that so many children don't even know what chips are made of.

"Kids have lost touch with even the most basic foods and no longer understand what they are eating."

He said banning foods or telling children not to eat them was not enough.

"This campaign is about talking to children in their language and sparking their curiosity so that they think about what they eat and start demanding healthier options," he said.

The images on the posters are partly covered by a "censored" stamp, but full ingredients can be found by visiting the charity's website.

The BHF is also sending out 600,000 action packs to youngsters and has enlisted the help of celebrities, including actress Fay Ripley and cricketer Andrew Flintoff, to help in the campaign.

Reference Source 108
November 8, 2005