Stages of change in the purchase of packaged foods after phase 1 of the implementation of the new food policy in Chile 2017

Stages of change and self-efficacy are related to consumption of food markers among Brazilian adolescents and young adults

Objective

This study aimed at analyzing the association between stages of change, consumption of food markers, and self-efficacy in the adoption of healthy eating practices, adjusted by nutritional knowledge, among Brazilian adolescents and young adults.

Methods

A cross-sectional analysis was conducted with 347 individuals from schools in the Federal District, Brazil. They completed a self-administered questionnaire covering: consumption of food markers, stage of change, self-efficacy in the adoption of healthy eating practices, and nutritional knowledge. Adjusted logistic regression was conducted.

Results

Participants in pre-contemplation (OR = 0.22), contemplation (OR = 0.19), decision (OR = 0.13) and action (OR = 0.40) stages have less chance to have healthy eating than those in maintenance, including fruits and vegetables [pre-contemplation (OR = 0.23), contemplation (OR = 0.19), and decision (OR = 0.09)]. Adolescents and young adults in pre-contemplation (OR = 0.29) and contemplation (OR = 0.37) had lower chances of having low consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages compared to those in maintenance (p < 0.05). Adolescents and young adults in pre-contemplation (OR = 0.38) and contemplation (OR = 0.36) were less likely to have high self-efficacy scores than those in maintenance (p < 0.05). Higher score of self-efficacy was associated with a lower chance of having a high consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (OR = 1.02; p = 0.032).

Conclusion

Regardless of nutritional knowledge, individuals in the earlier stages of change are less likely to have an adequate consumption of healthy foods markers, including fruits and vegetables, and low sugar-sweetened beverages consumption. They are also less likely to have high self-efficacy scores than those in maintenance. Nutritional interventions to focus on enhancing self-efficacy among adolescents and young adults in earlier stages of change to improve dietary habits.

Incidental exposure to hedonic and healthy food features affects food preferences one day later

Memories acquired incidentally from exposure to food information in the environment may often become active to later affect food preferences. Because conscious use of these memories is not requested or required, these incidental learning effects constitute a form of indirect memory. In an experiment using a novel food preference paradigm (n = 617), we found that brief incidental exposure to hedonic versus healthy food features indirectly affected food preferences a day later, explaining approximately 10% of the variance in preferences for tasty versus healthy foods. It follows that brief incidental exposure to food information can affect food preferences indirectly for at least a day. When hedonic and health exposure were each compared to a no-exposure baseline, a general effect of hedonic exposure emerged across individuals, whereas health exposure only affected food preferences for high-BMI individuals. This pattern suggests that focusing attention on hedonic food features engages common affective processes across the general population, whereas focusing attention on healthy food features engages eating restraint goals associated with high BMI. Additionally, incidental exposure to food features primarily changed preferences for infrequently consumed foods, having less impact on habitually consumed foods. These findings offer insight into how hedonic information in the obesogenic food environment contributes to unhealthy eating behavior that leads to overweight and obesity. These findings further motivate the development of interventions that counteract the effects of exposure to hedonic food information and that broaden the effects of exposure to healthy food information.

The drivers, trends and dietary impacts of non-nutritive sweeteners in the food supply: a narrative review

Poor diets, including excess added sugar consumption, contribute to the global burden of disease. Subsequently, many nutrition policies have been implemented to reduce added sugar intake and improve population health, including taxes, education, labelling and environmental interventions. A potential consequence of these policy actions is the substitution of added sugars with non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) in a variety of foods and beverages. NNS are used to reduce the energy and sugar content of foods and beverages while maintaining their palatability. Evidence of the toxicological risks of NNS is inconsistent, though concerns have been raised over the potential substitution effects of ultra-processed foods containing NNS for whole foods. This review aimed to provide an overview of current NNS food supply and consumption patterns, assess added sugar-reduction policies and their impact on NNS, and determine the impact of NNS on food choice, energy intake and diet quality. NNS are widely available in a variety of products, though most commonly in carbonated beverages, dairy products, confectionery, table-top sweeteners and fruit drinks. However, the longitudinal trends of different product categories, and differences between geographies and economy-income levels, require further study. Few studies have examined NNS consumption trends globally, though an increase in NNS consumption in beverages has been observed in some regions. Research examining how the increased availability of low-sugar, NNS-containing products affects global dietary patterns is limited, particularly in terms of their potential substitution effects.