Children who spend a lot of time watching television consume higher amounts of sweetened beverages, such as soft drinks, a new study suggests.

Swedish scientists questioned the parents of over 1,700 children aged between two and nine about their television habits and beverage consumption.

The study found that around one in seven parents actively attempted to reduce their children's exposure to advertisements on television. Those same parents said that their children tended to drink less sweetened beverages.

However the children of parents who did not restrict their exposure to TV advertisements were twice as likely to drink sweetened beverages every week.

"The children who watched more TV were more likely to drink these beverages. In fact, each additional hour in front of the TV increased the likelihood of regular consumption by 50%. A similar link was found for total screen time," the scientists from the University of Gothenburg explained.

In a follow-up study carried out two years later, the scientists again found that those who watched the most TV advertisements were more likely to drink sweetened beverages regularly.

However, this link could not be fully attributed to exposure to TV ads, therefore the team suggested that the type of programmes the children watched could play a role, or children may simply enjoy these types of drinks when watching television.

The study comes in the same week that the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland announced that the advertising of foods and drinks high in fat, salt and sugar, will be banned during children's TV programming from September 2. For more on that story click here.

The findings of the Swedish study are published in the International Journal of Public Health.