In a latest examine printed within the journal Food Research International, researchers explored the position of message framing in selling the consumption of other sweeteners, particularly candy proteins, to scale back sugar consumption. Their findings point out that people usually tend to be influenced by messaging highlighting sugar substitutes’ well being advantages, although specializing in their lack of synthetic components can be useful.

Study: Beyond sugar: Exploring the influence of health and naturalness framing on attitudes towards products with sweet proteins in Europe

Background

Estimates recommend that European Union residents devour a median of 34 kg of sugar annually, greater than thrice the quantity really useful by the World Health Organization. The enhance in sugar consumption has a deleterious impact on public well being and has been related to rising weight problems charges. Strategies corresponding to taxing sugary meals and drinks, strengthening dietary labeling rules, and decreasing the advertising and marketing of those meals to youngsters haven’t had the specified impact of decreasing their consumption.

However, breakthroughs in precision fermentation have allowed scientists to develop ‘candy proteins’ corresponding to thaumatin, which is well digestible and non-allergenic. Notably, they’re created utilizing yeast to precise and isolate proteins occurring naturally in some fruit. They are a promising different to synthetic sweeteners corresponding to sucralose and aspartame with out the related well being dangers.

It is vital to market the novel candy proteins in a manner that influences shopper attitudes and perceptions and interprets to lowered sugar consumption. Previous analysis has indicated that perceptions of well being and naturalness have a task to play and could also be moderated by physique mass index (BMI) and feelings related to sugar consumption, like anticipatory guilt.

About the examine

In the current examine, researchers investigated how well being and naturalness perceptions influenced attitudes towards merchandise containing candy proteins. A subsequent examine additionally assessed the elements that reasonable this relationship, corresponding to BMI and anticipatory guilt for well being messaging, earlier consumption of other sweeteners, and anticipatory pleasure for naturalness messaging.

The researchers examined these influences experimentally by presenting comparable messages that solely differed in how they described candy proteins. The well being body centered on their well being advantages as a sugar different, whereas the naturalness body highlighted their variations from presently out there synthetic sweeteners. To be eligible for the examine, members wanted to be between 20 and 70 years outdated and both be decision-makers for his or her households or share duty for meals purchases.

Researchers assessed perceptions of the proteins by asking members to fee the objects on Likert scales the place larger values indicated larger settlement with statements associated to their advantages. Other questions elicited the diploma of accountability, duty, and guilt members really feel when consuming sugary meals. Participant BMI was calculated from self-reported data. Sociodemographic traits have been additionally included. The knowledge was analyzed utilizing strategies corresponding to evaluation of covariance and regression-based path evaluation, with nation of residence as a covariate.

Findings

For the principle experiment on the position of product messaging (well being vs. naturalness), knowledge have been collected from 296 members in Denmark, of whom 147 obtained naturalness messages and 149 obtained well being messages. Half of the members have been male, and the typical age was 27 years.

The evaluation indicated a big distinction in attitudes in the direction of candy proteins between the 2 teams. Participants who obtained the health-related messaging reported a median favorability of 5.07 out of a most of seven, as in comparison with 4.34 for individuals who obtained naturalness messaging. Gender and age didn’t present important correlations with attitudes to the merchandise.

In the following examine, researchers centered on three nations whose residents have proven curiosity in decreasing sugar consumption – Poland, Germany, and Denmark. There have been roughly 1,000 members from every nation, of whom half obtained messages associated to every experimental situation (well being and naturalness). They have been 45.59 years outdated on common, and 48% have been male.

Similar to the principle examine, members throughout all three nations as soon as once more reported extra optimistic attitudes when uncovered to the well being framing. There was a slight however important adverse impact of BMI on well being perceptions with a slope of -0.008. Bootstrapping strategies confirmed this notion was notably important for these with medium to excessive BMI ranges. The implication is that well being message framing will increase well being perceptions for these at excessive BMI ranges. Similarly, anticipatory guilt translated to extra favorable product attitudes for individuals who obtained well being messages.

Researchers discovered a slightly important consequence for the naturalness messaging, indicating that members who devour extra sweeteners could understand candy proteins extra positively. They additionally established that anticipatory pleasure moderates the impact of the naturalness messaging, implying that those that already devour sweeteners could also be extra receptive to this message as a result of they anticipate the enjoyment of consuming them.

Conclusions

The examine generated novel insights into how candy proteins may be promoted to customers to scale back sugar consumption and enhance well being outcomes. However, the authors acknowledge that whereas attitudes are essential, they might not all the time translate to conduct and consumption. Further examine ought to strengthen these findings via behavioral knowledge.