Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30017011›Full record

ArticlePublic health nutrition2018

Can front-of-pack labels influence portion size judgements for unhealthy foods?

Zenobia Talati, Simone Pettigrew, Bridget Kelly, Kylie Ball, Bruce Neal, Helen Dixon, Trevor Shilton, Caroline Miller

Erratum issuedAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Public health nutrition, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Zenobia Talati1School of Psychology,Curtin University,Kent Street,Bentley,WA6102,Australia.
Simone Pettigrew1School of Psychology,Curtin University,Kent Street,Bentley,WA6102,Australia.
Bridget Kelly2Early Start, School of Health and Society,University of Wollongong,Wollongong,New South Wales,Australia.
Kylie Ball3Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition,School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences,Deakin University,Geelong,Victoria,Australia.
Bruce Neal4The George Institute for Global Health,UNSW Sydney, Sydney,New South Wales,Australia.
Helen Dixon6Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer,Cancer Council Victoria,Melbourne,Victoria,Australia.
Trevor Shilton7National Heart Foundation,Perth,Western Australia,Australia.
Caroline Miller8Population Health Research Group, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute,Adelaide,South Australia,Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveBy clearly conveying the healthiness of a food, front-of-pack (FOP) labels have the potential to influence the portion size considered appropriate for consumption. The present study examined the how the Daily Intake Guide (DIG), Multiple Traffic Lights (MTL) and Health Star Rating (HSR) FOP labels affect judgements of appropriate portion sizes of unhealthy foods compared with when no FOP label is present.

designRespondents viewed mock packages of unhealthy variations of pizzas, cookies, yoghurts and cornflakes featuring the DIG, MTL, HSR or no FOP label, and indicated the portion size they believed should be eaten of each food on a single occasion.

settingThe survey was completed on the respondent's personal computer. SUBJECTS: A total of 1505 Australian adults provided 4166 ratings across 192 mock packages relating to four product categories: pizza, yoghurt, cornflakes and cookies.

resultsCompared with no FOP label, the HSR resulted in a small but significant reduction in the portion size selected as appropriate for consumption of pizzas and cornflakes (P<0·05). The MTL resulted in smaller portions of cornflakes being selected compared with no FOP label (P<0·05).

conclusionsRespondents perceived smaller portion sizes as appropriate for some, but not all, of the foods tested when FOP labels with more interpretative formats (HSR, MTL) appeared on-pack compared with no FOP label. No effect was found for the less interpretive FOP label (the DIG). Interpretive FOP labels may have the potential to influence portion size judgements, albeit at modest levels.

Indexed as

AdultAustraliaConsumer BehaviorDiet, HealthyFemaleFoodFood AnalysisFood LabelingFood PreferencesHumansMalePerceptionPortion SizeDaily intakeFood labelHealth starPortion sizeTraffic light

Identifiers

PMID30017011
PMCPMC10261024

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.