IF one is to believe urban fokelore the Mars bar, that ubiquitous confection of chocolate and sugar, can also, improve your sex life in ways that do not bear thinking about. So far the marketing instinct to exploit such alleged unorthodox usage has been resisted. But the temptation for the manufacturers proved too great when faced with the myth surrounding another of its confectionery products, the multi-coloured M-and-M sweets. Apparently there is a school of thought which believes that green-coloured M-and-Ms possess aphrodisiac qualities. This, of course, is ludicrous as everyone knows that black smarties are the answer to a flagging libido.

In a new advertising campaign a sensual green M-and-M cartoon character, with pouting mouth and mascara-heavy eyelashes, will address this intriguing claim which has remained unsubstantiated since the product was introduced in 1949.

"Nobody knows how the rumour started," according to a company spokesman, "but we felt we could now have some fun with it." So in the cause of market research, dim the lights, pour the champagne - and break out the green M-and-Ms.