ArticleNutrients2020
Results of a Mass Media Campaign in South Africa to Promote a Sugary Drinks Tax.
Article in Nutrients, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- An umbrella review of the acceptability of fiscal and pricing policies to reduce diet-related noncommunicable disease.Nutrition reviews · 2023Pooled it
- Self-reported impact of the sugar-sweetened beverage tax on consumer attitudes among adults in Newfoundland and Labrador: A comparison with other Canadian provinces in 2021 and 2022.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2026Article
- Taxation of sugar-sweetened beverages: Perspectives of adults and nursing practitioners in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, South Africa.Journal of public health research · 2026Article
- (Un)sweetened deal? Young people's views on the South African Health Promotion Levy and food in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- The Lancet Commission on rethinking coronary artery disease: moving from ischaemia to atheroma.Lancet (London, England) · 2025Review
- Stakeholder arguments during the adoption of a sugar sweetened beverage tax in South Africa and their influence: a content analysis.Global health action · 2023Article
- Epidemiology of chronic multimorbidity and temporary migration in a rural South African community in health transition: A cross-sectional population-based analysis.Frontiers in epidemiology · 2023Article
- Article
- The Instrumental Role of Strategic Communication to Counter Industry Marketing Responses to Sugary Drink Taxes Comment on "Understanding Marketing Responses to a Tax on Sugary Drinks: A Qualitative Interview Study in the United Kingdom, 2019".International journal of health policy and management · 2023Article
- Are intentions to change, policy awareness, or health knowledge related to changes in dietary intake following a sugar-sweetened beverage tax in South Africa? A before-and-after study.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2022Article
- 'Love with Less Salt': evaluation of a sodium reduction mass media campaign in China.BMJ open · 2022Article
- The 'sugar tax' in Bermuda: a mixed methods study of general population and key stakeholder perceptions.BMC public health · 2022Article
- Decomposing consumer and producer effects on sugar from beverage purchases after a sugar-based tax on beverages in South Africa.Economics and human biology · 2022Article
- How the "Are We Drinking Ourselves Sick?" Communication Campaign Built Support for Policy Action on Sugary Drinks in Jamaica.Nutrients · 2022Article
- South Africa's Health Promotion Levy on pricing and acquisition of beverages in small stores and supermarkets.Public health nutrition · 2022Article
- Tax awareness and perceived cost of sugar-sweetened beverages in four countries between 2017 and 2019: findings from the international food policy study.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2022Article
- Determinants of dietary patterns in school going adolescents in Urban Zambia.Frontiers in nutrition · 2022Article
- Examining Chile's unique food marketing policy: TV advertising and dietary intake in preschool children, a pre- and post- policy study.Pediatric obesity · 2021Article
- Examining the news media reaction to a national sugary beverage tax in South Africa: a quantitative content analysis.BMC public health · 2021Article
- The political economy of sugar-sweetened beverage taxation: an analysis from seven countries in sub-Saharan Africa.Global health action · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn South Africa, the increased consumption of sugary drinks has been associated with increased obesity rates. Mass media campaigns can play a crucial role in improving knowledge, shifting attitudes, and building support for government action on reducing sugary drink consumption. No study to date has evaluated the effectiveness of mass media campaigns on the health harms of sugary drinks in South Africa.
objectiveThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a mass media campaign on knowledge and attitudes around sugary drinks and on public support for a proposed tax on sugary drinks in South Africa.
methodsThe "Are You Drinking Yourself Sick?" campaign aired in South Africa from October 2016 to June 2017 to shift attitudes toward sugary drinks, build personal risk perceptions of the health harms of consuming sugary drinks, and build public support for a proposed tax on sugary drinks. Campaign impact was measured in representative cross-sectional household surveys of adults ages 18 to 56. The surveys were conducted just prior to the launch of the campaign (
resultsThe campaign was recalled by 55% of survey respondents, and 78% of campaign-aware respondents said that the campaign's main message was "drinking sugary drinks can make you sick." There were significant changes from the pre- to the post-campaign period in knowledge that sugary drink consumption can lead to obesity and related health problems and that sugary drinks contribute toward the obesity problem in South Africa. Campaign awareness was also significantly associated with increases in knowledge about the harms of sugary drinks, and in particular, on government action, including the proposed tax on sugary drinks. DISCUSSION: Media campaigns are an effective intervention for obesity prevention. In addition to improving knowledge and shifting attitudes, media campaigns can effectively build public support for strong government action and therefore must be a component of a comprehensive obesity prevention approach.
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