Do nutritional warnings encourage healthier choices on food ordering websites? An exploratory experimental study in Uruguay

Abstract

AbstractObjective:To evaluate if the inclusion of nutritional warnings in food ordering websites can discourage consumers from purchasing foods with excessive content of nutrients associated with non-communicable diseases (NCD).Design:Participants were randomly assigned to one of the two experimental conditions: control (n 225) or nutritional warnings (n 222). Nutritional warnings corresponded to separate black octagonal signs containing the word ‘Excess’ followed by the corresponding nutrient: total fat, saturated fat, sugars and sodium. Participants were asked to purchase a lunch for themselves using a simulated food ordering website.Setting:Online study in Uruguay.Participants:Convenience sample of 447 Uruguayan participants, recruited using social media.Results:In the control condition, 76 % of the participants selected a dish or a beverage with excessive content of at least one nutrient in the simulated food ordering website. When nutritional warnings were included, this percentage significantly decreased to 62 % (P = 0·002). In addition, nutritional warnings caused a significant reduction in the percentage of participants who selected dishes with excessive content of total fat: 50 % v. 62 % (P = 0·012).Conclusions:Results from the present work provide preliminary evidence that the inclusion of nutritional warnings in food ordering websites could discourage consumers from selecting dishes and beverages with excessive content of nutrients associated with NCD.