'Black Out Rage Gallon' (aka borg): An investigation of a risky drinking trend on TikTok

ISSUE ADDRESSED

A 'Black Out Rage Gallon' (borg) is a customised, individual alcoholic beverage popularised on TikTok, whereby half the water in a gallon jug is replaced with alcohol (usually spirits), flavourings, electrolytes and caffeine. We investigated the characteristics and portrayal of the emerging alcohol trend associated with the hashtag descriptor #borg on TikTok.

METHODS

We identified highly viewed TikTok videos with the #borg hashtag (n = 103) and conducted a content analysis, capturing viewer engagement ('likes', shares, comments), techniques used, characteristics of featured individuals, and the portrayal of alcohol and risky drinking behaviours.

RESULTS

Alcohol was visible in three quarters of the videos analysed (n = 78, average amount of alcohol present 865 mL per borg) and consumed in one third of the videos (n = 34). One quarter of videos (n = 25) promoted alleged benefits of borg consumption compared to other alcohol products or approaches to drinking, yet only nine videos included a warning about potential harms.

CONCLUSIONS

The borg trend on TikTok may encourage risky drinking, by portraying it in a style that younger viewers are likely to see as fun and entertaining. SO WHAT?: We were able to gain a better understanding of how this potentially health harming activity is represented on a social media platform that is popular with young people. The speedy dissemination of this trend highlights the need to monitor, investigate and counter emerging trends. Concurrently, there is an urgent need for content restrictions to limit the visibility and promotion of risky alcohol consumption on TikTok.

A massive hit that targets kids quite a bit: Where and how Australian school children see energy drinks

ISSUES ADDRESSED

Energy drinks (EDs) are not recommended for children due to their high caffeine content and adverse health risks. Their popularity among children may be due to children's exposure to ED marketing. This study aimed to identify where children have seen ED marketing and whether they believe ED marketing targets them.

METHODS

Participant data were drawn from 'AMPED UP: An Energy Drink Study', where 3688 students in grades 7-12 (age 12-17 years) from 25 randomly selected secondary schools in Western Australia were asked if they had ever seen ED advertising on television, posters/signs in shops, online/internet, movies, cars/vehicles, social media, magazines/newspapers, music videos, video games, merchandise and free samples. Participants were also shown three ED advertisements and asked, 'Which age group/s do you think this ad targets?' (12 years or less, 13-17 years, 18-23 years, 24 years or older) and could select multiple age groups for each advertisement.

RESULTS

On average, participants saw ED advertising on 6.5 (SD = 2.5) of 11 possible marketing channels, including television (seen by 91% of participants), posters/signs in shops (88%), online/internet (82%) and movies (71%). Participants also perceived ED advertisements targeted children (< 18 years).

CONCLUSIONS

ED marketing has a high reach among Western Australian children. The voluntary ED advertising pledge to not market EDs to children in Australia does not prevent children from seeing or being targeted by ED marketing. SO WHAT?: Stronger regulatory control of ED marketing is needed to better protect children from the appeal and adverse health risks of ED use.

Nutritional quality of children's menus in restaurants: does cuisine type matter?

OBJECTIVE

It is unknown whether the nutritional quality of children's menus varies depending on the cuisine type. This study aimed to investigate differences in the nutritional quality of children's menus by cuisine type in restaurants located in Perth, Western Australia (WA).

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Perth, WA.

PARTICIPANTS

Children's menus (n 139) from the five most prevalent restaurant cuisine types in Perth (i.e. Chinese, Modern Australian, Italian, Indian and Japanese) were assessed using the Children's Menu Assessment Tool (CMAT; range -5-21 with lower scores denoting lower nutritional quality) and the Food Traffic Light system, evaluated against Healthy Options WA Food and Nutrition Policy recommendations. Non-parametric ANOVA was used to test for a significant difference in total CMAT scores among cuisine types.

RESULTS

Total CMAT scores were low for all cuisine types (range -2-5), with a significant difference between cuisine types (Kruskal-Wallis H = 58·8, P < 0·001). The highest total CMAT score by cuisine type was Modern Australian (mean = 2·27, sd = 1·41) followed by Italian (mean = 2·02, sd = 1·02), Japanese (mean = 1·80, sd = 2·39), Indian (mean = 0·30, sd = 0·97) and Chinese (mean = 0·07, sd = 0·83). When using the Food Traffic Light for assessment, Japanese cuisine had the highest percentage of green food items (44 %), followed by Italian (42 %), Modern Australian (38 %), Indian (17 %) and Chinese (14 %).

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, the nutritional quality of children's menus was poor regardless of cuisine type. However, children's menus from Japanese, Italian and Modern Australian restaurants scored better in terms of nutritional quality than children's menus from Chinese and Indian restaurants.

Awake and Alert: Examining the Portrayal of Energy Drinks on TikTok

PURPOSE

Energy drinks (EDs) are not recommended for minors' consumption due to a myriad of health risks, but marketing initiatives persist. This study explored the promotion of EDs on TikTok, a platform frequented by children and adolescents.

METHODS

197 highly viewed videos from the four top ED-related hashtags on TikTok were coded for engagement variables, user information, sponsorship status, video content, and sentiment toward EDs.

RESULTS

Of the 197 videos analyzed (combined 70 + million views), 29% disclosed sponsorship and 22% featured a child/adolescent. ED consumption appeared in 46% of videos, with 15% depicting hazardous consumption. Most videos (67%) had a positive sentiment toward EDs.

DISCUSSION

ED-related TikTok videos are positively framed, have high engagement, and are not restricted for viewing by minors. As the platform's underage user-base grows, such videos may encourage heightened consumption. Given the known health risks, effective age-gated content restrictions are needed to reduce minors' exposure.

The Nutritional Quality of Kids’ Menus from Cafés and Restaurants: An Australian Cross-Sectional Study

Australian families increasingly rely on eating foods from outside the home, which increases intake of energy-dense nutrient-poor foods. ‘Kids’ Menus’ are designed to appeal to families and typically lack healthy options. However, the nutritional quality of Kids’ Menus from cafes and full-service restaurants (as opposed to fast-food outlets) has not been investigated in Australia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the nutritional quality of Kids’ Menus in restaurants and cafés in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia. All 787 cafes and restaurants located within the East Metropolitan Health Service area were contacted and 33% had a separate Kids’ Menu. The validated Kids’ Menu Healthy Score (KIMEHS) was used to assess the nutritional quality of the Kids’ Menus. Almost all Kids’ Menus (99%) were rated ‘unhealthy’ using KIMEHS. The mean KIMEHS score for all restaurants and cafés was −8.5 (range −14.5 to +3.5) which was lower (i.e., more unhealthy) than the mean KIMEHS score for the top 10 most frequented chain fast-food outlets (mean −3.5, range −6.5 to +3). The findings highlight the need for additional supports to make improvements in the nutritional quality of Kids’ Menus. Local Government Public Health Plans provide an opportunity for policy interventions, using locally relevant tools to guide decision making.

Western Australian adolescent emotional wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020

BACKGROUND

The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been vast and are not limited to physical health. Many adolescents have experienced disruptions to daily life, including changes in their school routine and family's financial or emotional security, potentially impacting their emotional wellbeing. In low COVID-19 prevalence settings, the impact of isolation has been mitigated for most young people through continued face-to-face schooling, yet there may still be significant impacts on their wellbeing that could be attributed to the pandemic.

METHODS

We report on data from 32,849 surveys from Year 7-12 students in 40 schools over two 2020 survey cycles (June/July: 19,240; October: 13,609), drawn from a study of 79 primary and secondary schools across Western Australia, Australia. The Child Health Utility Index (CHU9D) was used to measure difficulties and distress in responding secondary school students only. Using comparable Australian data collected six years prior to the pandemic, the CHU9D was calibrated against the Kessler-10 to establish a reliable threshold for CHU9D-rated distress.

RESULTS

Compared to 14% of responding 12-18-year-olds in 2013/2014, in both 2020 survey cycles almost 40% of secondary students returned a CHU9D score above a threshold indicative of elevated difficulties and distress. Student distress increased significantly between June and October 2020. Female students, those in older Grades, those with few friendships or perceived poor quality friendships, and those with poor connectedness to school were more likely to score above the threshold.

CONCLUSIONS

In a large dataset collected during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the proportion of secondary school students with scores indicative of difficulties and distress was substantially higher than a 2013/2014 benchmark, and distress increased as the pandemic progressed, despite the low local prevalence of COVID-19. This may indicate a general decline in social and emotional wellbeing exacerbated by the events of the pandemic.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ANZCTRN (ACTRN12620000922976). Retrospectively registered 17/08/2020. https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=380429&isReview=true .

Children's exposure to outdoor food advertising near primary and secondary schools in Australia

ISSUE ADDRESSED

Previous research has highlighted children's frequent exposure to advertisements of unhealthy food and beverages on television. However, the food industry is increasingly utilising non-broadcast channels such as outdoor advertising (eg billboards, bus shelters, shop fronts) for product marketing. Few studies have investigated children's exposure to outdoor food advertising around primary and secondary schools. This study aimed to quantify the presence and content of outdoor food advertisements within a 500 m radius of primary and secondary schools in Perth, Western Australia.

METHODS

A cross-sectional design was used to capture outdoor advertisements within a 500 m radial buffer around the school boundary. The INFORMAS protocol for monitoring outdoor advertising around child-serving institutions was used. Sixty-four primary and secondary schools in Perth, Australia, were selected using random sampling within socio-economic and population density strata.

RESULTS

In total, 5636 outdoor advertisements were identified within a 500 m radius of all 64 schools combined and 30% were for food. Of the 1708 food advertisements, 74% were for unhealthy (non-core) food. The most frequently advertised food products were alcohol, fast food and sugar-sweetened beverages. Only 8% of food advertisements featured a healthy product. The majority of schools (75%) had at least one food advertisement within 500 m (mean 36, range 3-190). Schools in lower socio-economic areas had more food advertisements and a significantly higher proportion of unhealthy food advertisements within 250 m.

CONCLUSION

Outdoor advertising around schools constitutes a potential frequent source of children's exposure to unhealthy food and alcohol advertising. SO WHAT?: Policy interventions restricting the content of outdoor food advertising near schools are needed.

DETECT Schools Study Protocol: A Prospective Observational Cohort Surveillance Study Investigating the Impact of COVID-19 in Western Australian Schools

Introduction: Amidst the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, understanding the transmission dynamics of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is key to providing peace of mind for the community and informing policy-making decisions. While available data suggest that school-aged children are not significant spreaders of SARS-CoV-2, the possibility of transmission in schools remains an ongoing concern, especially among an aging teaching workforce. Even in low-prevalence settings, communities must balance the potential risk of transmission with the need for students' ongoing education. Through the roll out of high-throughput school-based SARS-CoV-2 testing, enhanced follow-up for individuals exposed to COVID-19 and wellbeing surveys, this study investigates the dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and the current psychosocial wellbeing impacts of the pandemic in school communities. Methods: The DETECT Schools Study is a prospective observational cohort surveillance study in 79 schools across Western Australia (WA), Australia. To investigate the incidence, transmission and impact of SARS-CoV-2 in schools, the study comprises three "modules": Module 1) Spot-testing in schools to screen for asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2; Module 2) Enhanced surveillance of close contacts following the identification of any COVID-19 case to determine the secondary attack rate of SARS-CoV-2 in a school setting; and Module 3) Survey monitoring of school staff, students and their parents to assess psycho-social wellbeing following the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in WA. Clinical Trial Registration: Trial registration number: ACTRN12620000922976.

Long-term economic outcomes for interventions in early childhood: protocol for a systematic review

INTRODUCTION

Investment in early childhood produces positive returns: for the child, the family and the community. Benefits have been shown to be significant within certain parameters, but a systematic review of the economic evidence across multiple sectors including health, education and social welfare will have the capacity to inform policy relative to the full range of social determinants. This review will take a broad approach, encompassing a range of costs and benefits to enable the identification of the most beneficial investments in early childhood and to highlight gaps in current research.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

Economic evaluations incorporating both costs and long-term outcomes of early childhood interventions and programmes will be included. Outcomes may be valued in monetary units or quantified non-monetary units (eg, quality-adjusted life years (QALY), disability-adjusted life years (DALY)). Results will be expressed as a ratio according to the outcome; with monetary outcomes expressed as cost-benefit ratios or return on investment, and non-monetary outcomes expressed as cost per QALY or DALY. The target population is children aged 0-5 years.Extensive database searches across sectors will be undertaken. The review will involve five phases: defining the research question, identifying relevant studies, selecting studies, extracting and collating data, and summarising and reporting results. The search commenced in 2019 and the expected end date is December 2020.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

The findings of this review will inform policymakers and practitioners in public health, education, social welfare and primary care settings. The publication plan includes a series of academic publications, and policy papers prepared and disseminated through Telethon Kids Institute networks. Exemption from ethics approval was granted by the University of Western Australia Human Ethics Office (RA/4/20/5677).

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42020145901.