Effects of Health Claims on Consumption and Taste in Children: The Moderating Effects of Sex.

Abstract

Research on adults has shown that when certain energy dense foods (EDF) are marketed as ‘healthy’, consumption of these foods increases during a single eating occasion. However, the effect health claims can have on consumption and taste in pre-adolescent children is largely unknown. The main objective of this thesis was to examine how health claims influence energy intake (EI) and liking in pre-adolescent children. A between-subject experimental design was used, whereby 66 participants (34 girls and 32 boys, mean ± SD age: 10.5 ± 1.4 years), consumed a chocolate milkshake while watching specific videos on YouTube ® for 20 minutes. The participants were randomly assigned in equal numbers split into one of two groups. For one group (control), no label was added and nothing was said about the milkshake. In the experimental (health claim) group, the milkshakes were labeled and presented as “high in calcium, and healthy”. The primary outcomes were EI and liking of the milkshake, while appetite sensations were also assessed using visual analogue scales (VAS). Results from Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) indicate that compared to the same shake without a health claim, a chocolate milkshake that was advertised as healthy was perceived as healthier, although there was no effect on EI or taste. When sex was investigated, boys consumed significantly more calories than girls when the milkshake was advertised as healthy. The higher EI from boys in the ‘healthy’ condition suggests a health claim may elicit different food consumption behaviors between sexes. In addition, the participants from the experimental (healthy) group who rated the milkshake as highly healthy consumed significantly more calories than those from the same group who only rated the milkshake moderately healthy. Further research is needed to better determine the effects of different health claims on children’s taste and EI, and to corroborate these initial findings and examine the underlying reasons for the observed sex differences.