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According to a study released in open access, changing the default display order of foods on the screen or suggesting substitutes that are lower in saturated fats could help customers make healthier choices when they are available. They buy food online. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.
Dr. Dimitrios Kutoukidis, the main author, said:
Finding effective ways to reduce saturated fats in our shopping baskets, such as meat, cheese or desserts, can result in lower consumption, which could reduce our risk of heart disease. This is the first randomized trial to directly compare interventions targeting the environment and the individual to encourage healthier food choices. The findings could provide effective strategies for improving the nutritional quality of online food purchases. "
Dr. Koutoukidis and a team of researchers from the University of Oxford, UK, conducted an experiment with 1088 British household grocery shoppers, with the help of 39; an experimental online supermarket specifically designed for the study. Participants were asked to choose ten "everyday" foods that they and their families would like to eat from a predefined shopping list.
The participants were randomly badigned to one of the four groups. The first group was shown a list of food products categorized according to their saturated fat content ranging from low to high (environmental intervention). The second group has been seen offering the option of exchanging a product rich in saturated fats for a similar product containing less saturated fats (intervention at the individual level). The third group was shown a combination of both the ranked list and offered the opportunity to exchange products (combined intervention), while the fourth group was shown no ranked list, nor given the 39; option to exchange products (no intervention control). The authors found that participants in the intervention groups chose products with lower saturated fat than those who received no intervention. Changing the default order has proven to be more effective than offering product exchanges. Combining the two was more effective than offering swaps but no more effective than changing the default order of items.
For participants who received no intervention, the percentage of calories from saturated fats in their shopping baskets was 25.7%. By changing the food order or offering swaps, the percentage of calories from saturated fats was reduced by 5.0% and 2.0%, respectively. A combination of both interventions reduced it by 5.4% compared to controls. The total cost of the basket did not differ significantly between the groups.
The authors point out that these interventions must now be tested in real online supermarkets, as this was an experimental platform in which participants chose but did not receive food and did not spend their money. own money. Given that the predefined shopping list focused on foods high in saturated fats, the effect of these interventions would probably be less important during real-life purchases, which would include a broader range of products.
Dr. Koutoukidis said:
These results could be taken advantage of by online supermarkets that could implement one or the other strategy, knowing that they are potentially effective at reducing saturated fats in baskets. purchase from their customers and thus shape healthier food choices. "
Source:
BioMed Central
Journal reference:
Koutoukidis, D.A. et al. (2019) Well-established positioning and food exchanges are effective interventions to reduce the saturated fat content of the shopping cart in an experimental online supermarket: a randomized controlled trial. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. doi.org/10.1186/s12966-019-0810-9.
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