A randomised experimental study comparing perceptions of two energy drink health warning labels

Abstract

Issue addressed Consumption of energy drinks is a public health concern, particularly in adolescents and young adults. This study explored energy drink consumers' reactions to an energy drink‐specific warning label (risk of cardiac effects) and a more general sugary drink warning label (risk of obesity). Methods An online experimental study randomly allocated Australian energy drink consumers aged 18‐39 years (N = 435) to view one of two label conditions (cardiac effects or obesity). Participants were assessed on: intention to reduce energy drink consumption, perceived health threat, perceived label effectiveness and policy support for energy drink warning labels. Results Mean intentions to reduce consumption scores were similar across the two label conditions (Mobesity = 2.5, Mcardiac = 2.6) overall; and were higher for the cardiac label (compared to obesity label) for some subgroups: females (Mobesity = 2.3, Mcardiac = 2.8; p = .037), older (25‐39 years; Mobesity = 2.4, Mcardiac = 2.8; p = .016); and higher education level (Mobesity = 1.9, Mcardiac = 2.7; p = .004). While perceived health threat measures were higher for obesity than cardiac effects, perceived label effectiveness measures of ‘believable’ and ‘relevant to me’ were higher for the cardiac label than the obesity label (believable: 71.0% vs 56.1%; relevant: 42.5% vs 29.4%). Participants who viewed the cardiac label were more likely to support policy than those shown the obesity label (OR = 1.6, 95%CI [1.1, 2.3], p = .02). Conclusions Health effect warnings labels were perceived by energy drink consumers to be impactful and are supported. Labels with energy drink‐specific health effects may offer additional benefit. So what? Policy makers can feel confident that warning labels on energy drinks will confer public health benefit.

Using the Nutrition Facts Label to Make Food Choices Is Associated with Healthier Eating among 8th and 11th-Grade Students: An Analysis of Statewide Representative Data from the 2019–2020 Texas School Physical Activity and Nutrition Survey

“…In line with labels, the experimental study also found that the inclusion of warning labels on energy drinks deterred their purchase among youth shoppers. Indeed, the inclusion of warning labels on these types of food items has been highlighted as a potential mechanism to deter consumption [ 40 , 41 ]. It could also be that adolescents are looking specifically to consume caffeinated beverages, and since energy drinks are heavily marketed on social media, adolescents tend to choose them for consumption over other beverages [ 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ].…”