{"id":6212,"date":"2022-03-08T09:08:52","date_gmt":"2022-03-08T14:08:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalfoodresearchprogram.org\/?p=6212"},"modified":"2025-01-09T16:49:53","modified_gmt":"2025-01-09T21:49:53","slug":"nutrition-claims-on-sugary-fruit-drinks-can-lead-to-less-healthy-choices-for-children-new-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.globalfoodresearchprogram.org\/nutrition-claims-on-sugary-fruit-drinks-can-lead-to-less-healthy-choices-for-children-new-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"Nutrition claims on sugary fruit drinks can lead to less healthy choices for children, new study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Parents are more likely to choose a fruit drink with added sugar for their young child when the drink\u2019s packaging includes nutrition-related claims, researchers with the Global Food Research Program found in a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"VirtualThis study is among the first to look at how claims influence parents\u2019 drink purchases for their young child (ages 1-5).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In their experiment, the research team invited parents to \u201cshop\u201d in a virtual convenience \u201cstore\u201d (similar to a video game, right<\/em>) on participants\u2019 own computers. The study\u2019s 2,219 participants were randomly assigned to view fruit drinks displaying one of three claims (\u201cNo artificial sweeteners,\u201d \u201c100% Vitamin C,\u201d or \u201c100% All Natural\u201d) or no claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Findings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The research team found that healthful claims increased misperceptions about nutritional quality. Even though all drink labels also contained nutritional panel information, parents who viewed drinks with claims were more likely to incorrectly believe that the fruit drinks did not contain added sugar or were 100% juice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cParents who saw the claims were more likely to pick the sugary fruit drink instead of water, as well as choose the sugary fruit drink instead of 100% fruit juice,\u201d said Marissa Hall<\/a>, assistant professor at UNC-Chapel Hill\u2019s Gillings School of Global Public Health and the study\u2019s lead author. \u201cThe sugary fruit drinks had over 30 grams of added sugar, and that information was right there on the label. But still, the presence of a claim made parents more likely to think that the sugary fruit drinks did not have any added sugar. Also, the claims made parents think that the drinks were 100% fruit juice, which was not the case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“The sugary fruit drinks had over 30 grams of added sugar, and that information was right there on the label. But still, the presence of a claim made parents more likely to think that the sugary fruit drinks did not have any added sugar.<\/strong>“<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Marissa Hall, PhD<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

These findings build on the authors\u2019 research<\/a> looking at how often nutrition-related claims appear on fruit drinks and how claims relate to drinks\u2019 actual nutritional profile. They have also examined sociodemographic disparities between households that purchase fruit drinks with claims (under review<\/a>). Key findings from these studies include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n