Public Health Campaigns That Focus on Positive Health Messages Prove More Effective
03 Jun 2015 --- New findings show that consumers, particularly children, respond better to being told what to eat in order to make them healthy, rather than what foods not to eat because they could be detrimental to health.
The researchers analyzed 43 published international studies that involved either negative or positive nutrition messages. They found that while negative messages tended to work best with experts -- like dietitians and physicians -who were highly involved and knowledgeable in the area, most people who did not know a lot about nutrition would rather be told what they should eat and why it is good for them.
In conclusion, the researchers recommend: when designing public health messaging campaigns, focus on positive consequences of target healthy behaviors rather than focusing on the negative consequences. This way, the message is more likely to be effective among the non-expert general public instead of only appealing to health and nutrition professionals. "If you're a parent, it's better to focus on the benefits of broccoli and not the harms of hamburgers," said lead author Brian Wansink, PhD director of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab and author of Slim by Design.
These findings compliment a recent 2015 publication in Nutrition Reviews, and it will be presented at the Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior's Annual Conference 2015 in Pittsburgh by Brian Wansink, PhD and Lizzy Pope, Ph.D. University of Vermont (previously with the Cornell Food and Brand Lab).
