Healthy Students Use Nutrition Labels in University Dining Halls, Study Shows

07 Jul 2016 --- A study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics shows that in college and university dining halls, students who are already health conscious may be the main users of nutrition labeling.

Nutrition labels may be important predictors of dietary selections among college students; however, awareness and use are not well understood in this population.

The aim of this work was to investigate the influence of label placement on label awareness and use, including influences over time. The researchers also aimed to identify predictors of awareness and use, preferred label information, and reasons for label nonuse.

“Those who track their food intake by using an app or some other sort of food diary are 6.6 times more likely to use the information on the labels to make food choices. This was the biggest predictor,” said Brenna Ellison, food economist at the University of Illinois and author of the study.

“We also found that students who exercised regularly, ate breakfast, and reported good or excellent eating habits were more likely to use nutrition labels.”

The researchers surveyed 2,729 university students in four different dining halls. After students sat down with their trays of food, they were asked to participate in a written survey. About 45% of the students surveyed said they saw the labels but only 20% used the information on the labels to make food choices. The surveys were conducted during weeks four, eight, and 12 of a semester.

Of those who didn’t use the labels, 61% said that they don’t care about the information, 32% said they already know the information, and 25% said they didn’t have time to use the information.

“We know that 80% of the ‘don’t care’ respondents exercised at least once a week, but only 12% had taken a college-level nutrition course,” said Ellison. “Our results suggest promoting other behaviors such as exercise or tracking intake may also encourage label use.” With the participants who exercised, the researchers found a dose response — the more often they exercised, the more likely they were to use the labels.

In conclusion, label awareness and use did not change with label placement or over time. The researchers suggest that making labels easy to read and including preferred information may encourage greater awareness and use.