Objective: Some claims on alcohol labels highlight virtuous aspects of brands or products, including in health-, eco-, and cause-oriented domains (including charity partnerships, or ethical or humanitarian certifications). This virtue marketing may create a "halo" whereby consumers generalize from specific attributes to a more favorable overall appraisal of the product, brand, or even alcohol or the alcohol industry in general. This study aims to describe the prevalence of and trends over time in virtue marketing on the packaging of new alcohol (including lower- and zero-alcohol) products on the Australian market.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco is a popular choice in Australia, with some people who smoke finding these products more attractive than factory-made cigarettes (FMC). Differences in visual and tactile properties and in the feel and taste of the smoke may contribute to this attractiveness. These differences may be driven by variation in tobacco constituents and wrapping paper permeability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground/aims: Discretionary, energy-dense, nutrient-poor food and drinks are heavily marketed and readily available in retail settings frequented by adolescents. This study examines associations between food purchasing practices in various retail settings and dietary intake among Australian adolescents.
Methods: Participants were students in years 8 to 11 (ages 12-17 years) who completed the 2009-10 (n = 13 790), 2012-13 (n = 10 309) or 2018 (n = 9102) National Secondary Students' Diet and Activity (NaSSDA) cross-sectional survey.
Mass media campaigns can change attitudes and behaviours to improve population health. However, a key challenge is achieving share of voice in a complex and cluttered media environment. The aim of this study was to compare advertising expenditure on public health campaigns for obesity prevention (and related healthy eating and physical activity campaigns) with competing commercial categories of (a) sugary drinks, (b) artificially sweetened drinks and (c) diet/weight loss products and programmes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: To investigate whether 'low sugar' and related claims influence consumers' perceptions of the healthiness or other attributes of alcoholic drinks, promote greater consumption or impact diet and activity behaviour intentions.
Method: N = 501 Australian women aged 18-35 viewed and rated six images of alcoholic drinks in a randomized online experiment with a 2 (claim: low sugar claim, no claim control) × 2 (drink type: cider, ready-to-drink spirits) between-subjects design.
Results: Participants who viewed drinks with low sugar claims rated them as healthier, less harmful to health, lower in sugar and kilojoules, and more suitable for weight management and a healthy diet than participants who viewed identical drinks with no claim (P < 0.
Objective: Marketing, label design, and product innovation strategies are being used by the alcohol industry to position some products as "healthier choices." The aim of this study was to systematically document the content and prevalence of health-oriented marketing on alcohol products on the Australian market and to compare the online availability of nutrition information and the alcohol and nutrient content between products with and without such features.
Method: Health-oriented marketing features on all beer, cider, and ready-to-drink (RTD) premixed drinks, and selected wines on the website of the largest liquor retailer in Australia were audited using a systematic coding protocol.
Skin cancer prevention efforts in Australia have increasingly incorporated a focus on protection during incidental sun exposure. This complements the long-present messages promoting protection in high-risk settings and avoidance of acute intense bouts of sun exposure. Data from two waves of a cross-sectional direct observational survey was used to assess the prevalence and correlates of = 12,083 adolescents' and adults' sun protection behavior (arm and leg cover, hat, sunglasses, and shade cover).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAust N Z J Public Health
June 2021
Objective: The aim of this study was to describe advertising expenditure for sugary drinks compared with alternative cold non-alcoholic beverages (artificially sweetened beverages, plain water, plain milk) between 2016 and 2018 across Australian media channels.
Methods: Monthly estimates of advertising expenditure for non-alcoholic beverages were obtained from Nielsen Media and aggregated by product type and media.
Results: Total sugary drink advertising expenditure between 2016 and 2018 ($129.
External influences on eating behaviour, such as portion size, have been reliably shown to influence food intake in the laboratory. However, little research has examined whether laboratory settings under or overestimate the effect that external influences have on food intake compared to when studied in the real-world. In Study 1, 60 participants (mean age = 32 years) were randomized to consume a large (200 g) or small (100 g) portion of popcorn under controlled laboratory conditions and during a separate session in their home.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPortion size impacts on the amount of energy consumed during a meal. However, research findings on participant characteristics that moderate the effect of portion size on energy intake are mixed. Using data pooled across three randomized control trials, we examined the impact of reducing meal portion size on meal energy intake in 111 adult participants varying in sex (55 M, 56 F), body weight (BMI range = 19-42) and a broad range of participant characteristics, including usual portion size, restrained, emotional and external eating, satiety responsiveness, plate clearing tendencies, concerns about wasting food and self-control.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe obesity crisis is one of the largest public health challenges of the 21st century. Population-level adiposity has increased dramatically in recent times, and people not recognizing that they have overweight or obesity is now common. It has been widely assumed that not recognizing oneself as having overweight is detrimental to weight management and long-term health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The current study aimed to assess the nutritional quality of Australian secondary school canteen menus.
Design: Stratified national samples of schools provided canteen menus in 2012-2013 and 2018, which were systematically assessed against a 'traffic light' classification system according to the National Healthy School Canteen Guidelines. Items were classified as green (healthiest and recommended to dominate canteen menus), amber (select carefully) or red (low nutritional quality, should not appear on canteen menus), and pricing and promotional strategies were recorded.
Laboratory studies have contributed important information about the determinants of food and alcohol intake, and they have prompted the development of behavior change interventions that have been evaluated in randomized controlled trials conducted in the field. In this article we apply a recent experimental medicine (EM) framework to this body of research. A conceptual review and focused discussion of the relevant literature is presented.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSkin cancer presents a significant public health burden in Australia. The present study aimed to supplement population-based estimates of sun protection behaviour by examining setting-specific trends in directly observed sun protection in public outdoor leisure settings. Repeated cross-sectional observational surveys of adolescents and adults were conducted on summer weekends between 11 am and 3 pm from 1992 to 2002, 2006 to 2012, and 2018 to 2019 (N = 44,979) at pools/beaches and parks/gardens within 25 km of the centre of Melbourne, Victoria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Smaller portions may help to reduce energy intake. However, there may be a limit to the magnitude of the portion size reduction that can be made before consumers respond by increasing intake of other food immediately or at later meals. We tested the theoretical prediction that reductions to portion size would result in a significant reduction to daily energy intake when the resulting portion was visually perceived as 'normal' in size, but that a reduction resulting in a 'smaller than normal' portion size would cause immediate or later additional eating.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPortion sizes of commercially available foods have increased, and there is evidence that exposure to portion sizes recalibrates what is perceived as 'normal' and subsequently, how much food is selected and consumed. The present study aims to explore the role of social (descriptive and injunctive) and personal portion size norms in this effect. Across two experiments, participants were either visually exposed to (Study 1, = 329) or actually served (Study 2, = 132) a smaller or larger than normal food portion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Our objective was to examine the kilocalorie (kcal) content of starters, sides and desserts served in major UK restaurant chains, comparing the kcal content of these dishes in fast-food and full-service restaurants.
Design: Observational study.
Setting: Menu and nutritional information provided online by major UK restaurant chains.
Reducing food portion size could reduce energy intake. However, it is unclear at what point consumers respond to reductions by increasing intake of other foods. We predicted that a change in served portion size would only result in significant additional eating within the same meal if the resulting portion size was no longer visually perceived as 'normal'.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFResearch conducted in controlled laboratory settings plays an important role in understanding human eating behaviour. However, participant characteristics may affect motivation to participate in laboratory eating behaviour research and result in self-selection biases. First-year psychology students (n = 207, 90.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObesity (Silver Spring)
July 2019