The adaptation, validation, and application of a methodology for estimating the added sugar content of packaged food products when total and added sugar labels are not mandatory

Scapin, Tailane; Louie, Jimmy Chun Yu; Pettigrew, Simone; Neal, Bruce; Rodrigues, Vanessa Mello; Fernandes, Ana Carolina; Bernardo, Greyce Luci; Uggioni, Paula Lazzarin; Proença, Rossana Pacheco da Costa

doi:10.1016/j.foodres.2021.110329

Cited by 16 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…In Brazil, information on the content of sugars in foods is not mandatory on product labels, and only 49 of the 238 products in the study had this declaration. Therefore, we estimated the content of total sugars, adapting the method described by Scapin et al (20), and then determined the added sugar content using the method proposed by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) (11).…”

Section: Rotulapp Database Registrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of two front-of-pack nutrition labels for Brazilian consumers using a smartphone app in a real-world grocery store: A pilot randomized controlled study

2022

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One of the suggestions for improving the understanding of food labels is implementing front-of-pack nutrition labeling (FoPNL), where nutritional information is objectively made available to consumers. Scientific data on the best FoPNL model to be adopted for the Brazilian population is still emerging, especially in real-world purchase situations. This study aims to evaluate/compare the proposed Brazilian and Mexican FoPNL systems, on different outcome measures, using an application, in dairy foods available in a supermarket aisle. This pilot randomized controlled trial in a real-world purchase situation was conducted in June/July 2021. A total of 230 participants were randomly allocated to one of the three study arms (Mexican and Brazilian FoPNL systems or control—nutritional information table and ingredients list). Using a smartphone, the participants scanned a product barcode and received the allocated FoPNL (with information about excessive added sugars, sodium, and/or saturated fat content) or the control. After, they answered questions related to our primary outcome (decision to buy or not to buy a product) and secondary outcomes (perceived healthiness, facilitation of a quick purchase decision, and identification of excess nutrients). The Mexican FoPNL system performed better in the primary outcome (3.74 ± 1.34) and “facilitation of a quick purchase decision” (3.59 ± 1.31), compared to the control (3.28 ± 1.45;p = 0.043 and 3.11 ± 1.42; p = 0.029). The Mexican FoPNL system performed better in supporting consumers to identify dairy foods, among the selected sample in this study, high in added sugars than the control (82.2% and 63.5% of correct answers, respectively; p = 0.009). For saturated fats, the Brazilian FoPNL resulted in 93.1% of correct answers against 48.2% for the control and 58.9% for the Mexican system (p ≤ 0.001). The Mexican FoPNL system facilitated consumer decision-making on when to buy or not to buy a selected dairy product and in helping to quickly decide which dairy products to buy, among the selected sample in this study, compared to the control. Considering the right answers of critical nutrients in excess or not, both models of FoPNL, delivered by a smartphone app, performed well.

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Section: Rotulapp Database Registrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of two front-of-pack nutrition labels for Brazilian consumers using a smartphone app in a real-world grocery store: A pilot randomized controlled study

2022

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“…These data suggest a trend in the reduction of sugar consumption at home, both at the table (added to juice, tea, and coffee) and in cooking (as an ingredient of cakes and desserts). However, packaged food consumption has increased, and these foods are high in added sugars ( 28 , 29 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

University Students' Knowledge and Perceptions About Concepts, Recommendations, and Health Effects of Added Sugars

et al. 2022

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It is recommended to limit added sugars to below 10% of the daily energy intake, as excessive consumption has been associated with several chronic non-communicable diseases. This exploratory qualitative study used focus groups to investigate the knowledge and perception of Brazilian university students about added sugars concepts, consumption recommendations, and health effects. Focus groups were led by a moderator using a semi-structured discussion guide. The focus groups were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and subjected to thematic analysis. Five focus groups were conducted with a total of 32 participants (50% women, mean age 23 years). Participants could not distinguish added sugars from sugars naturally present in foods and were unaware of the health impacts associated with excessive added sugar consumption, except for the risk of diabetes. Although most participants reported limiting sugar consumption, they had no knowledge of official consumption recommendations. Given that current public policy agendas aim to reduce added sugar intake, there is a need to strengthen strategies for disseminating information on added sugar concepts, recommendations, health effects and how to identify them in the foods products.

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“…Our evidence suggests that an octagonal front-of-pack warning similar to the one used in other Latin-American countries would have the best impact on incentivising Brazilian consumers to reduce their choices for products high in sugar. This is relevant considering recent evidence showing that most packaged foods and beverages sold in Brazil have added sugar ingredients in their composition ( 60 ), and that the Brazilian population is eating more added sugar than recommended by the WHO ( 11 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consumers' Response to Sugar Label Formats in Packaged Foods: A Multi-Methods Study in Brazil

et al. 2022

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Providing information about the sugar content of packaged foods on product labels is an important strategy to lower consumers' sugar intake. This study assessed the effect of exposure to different sugar labels on consumers' understanding of the sugar content of foods and their food choices. In the first phase, five focus groups were conducted with a convenience sample of Brazilian adults to explore their perceptions about food labelling in general and sugar labelling in particular. Based on the qualitative results, four sugar label formats were developed and subsequently tested in a five-arm study on 1,277 adults via a randomised controlled online survey. The formats were: (i) no sugar information—control, (ii) total and added sugar content displayed in the Nutrition Information Panel (NIP), (iii) a front-of-package (FoP) octagonal warning for “high-in-sugar” products, (iv) a FoP magnifying glass warning for “high-in-sugar” products, and (v) a “high-in-sugar” warning text embedded on the NIP. Participants from the focus groups reported being confused about the meaning of “sugar” and “added sugar” on food labels and indicated that more interpretive labels, such as the FoP warnings, would help them choose products with low sugar content. In the experiment, all intervention sugar label formats improved participants' understanding of the sugar content of the tested food products, with the FoP warnings (iii and iv) showing the best results. While non-significant differences among label conditions were observed for food choices, the FoP octagonal warning prompted participants to choose high-in-sugar products less often. Given current public policy agendas aiming to reduce added sugar intake, there is a need to strengthen food labelling policies and nutrition disclosure policies that target the display of added sugar and build consumer awareness in using these tools to avoid high-in-sugar products.

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The adaptation, validation, and application of a methodology for estimating the added sugar content of packaged food products when total and added sugar labels are not mandatory

Cited by 16 publications

References 41 publications

Comparison of two front-of-pack nutrition labels for Brazilian consumers using a smartphone app in a real-world grocery store: A pilot randomized controlled study

Comparison of two front-of-pack nutrition labels for Brazilian consumers using a smartphone app in a real-world grocery store: A pilot randomized controlled study

University Students' Knowledge and Perceptions About Concepts, Recommendations, and Health Effects of Added Sugars

Consumers' Response to Sugar Label Formats in Packaged Foods: A Multi-Methods Study in Brazil

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