Children more likely to have a can of fizzy drink than five portions of fruit and veg a day

The figures come from a new report by The British Heart Foundation – who are concerned that the unhealthy lifestyles of children today are setting them up for serious health problems in later life.

According to the study - done in partnership with a health promotion research group at Oxford University - over three quarters of children in England do not get their ‘five-a-day'.

But almost half of children get through a can of fizzy drink every day – which can contain up to nine teaspoons of sugar, says the report.

Children are also skipping breakfast – almost half of boys and over a third of girls aged 13 aren’t eating the most important meal of the day according to the report.

It is not only poor diets which posing a risk to children’s health, but also a lack of exercise says the report. At the age of 13, over three quarters of children say they do not do the recommended minimum of an hour’s daily physical activity, while a similar number say they watch at least two hours of TV on a week day.

Around a quarter of children spend at least six hours sitting down on Saturday and Sunday.

The data suggests that there has been little improvement in eating, drinking and exercise habits in spite of the concern about obesity and the launch of the government's child measurement programme, which warns parents if their children are overweight.

And although obesity in children is said to be levelling out, about a third of under-16s across the UK are either overweight or obese.

The British Heart Foundation have warned that children are in danger of developing heart disease as adults if they continue to skip healthy meals and sport in favour of watching TV and drinking fizzy drinks.