Poster Presentation Australian and New Zealand Obesity Society Annual Scientific Conference 2024

Effects of nutrition and other health-oriented marketing claims on young adults’ perceptions and hypothetical consumption of alcohol products: an online experiment  (#216)

Ashleigh Haynes 1 2 , Zenobia Talati 3 , Danica Keric 4 , Julia Stafford 4 , Ainslie Sartori 4 , Gael Myers 4 , Jane Martin 5 , Alison McAleese 6 , Tahnee McCausland 7 , Melanie Wakefield 1 2 , Helen Dixon 1 2
  1. Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer, Cancer Council Victoria, East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  2. Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
  3. Telethon Kids Institute, Perth, WA
  4. Cancer Council Western Australia, Subiaco, WA
  5. Food for Health Alliance, East Melbourne, VIC, Australia
  6. Prevention Division, Cancer Council Victoria, East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  7. Mental Health Commission, Government of Western Australia, Perth, WA

Introduction. Alcohol products are the largest discretionary source of energy in the diets of Australian drinkers, with excess alcohol consumption increasing the risk of weight gain as well as chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Nutrition and related claims (such as low sugar, natural, and organic) commonly feature on alcohol products on the Australian market and are targeted toward younger audiences and those with higher health or weight consciousness. These claims have the potential to mislead consumers and increase alcohol consumption.  

Materials and Methods. Australian young adults aged 18-24 (N=1,009) rated 10 alcohol products in an online between-subjects experiment. Participants in the ‘claim’ condition rated alcohol products with low sugar/carb, low calorie, natural, organic, and preservative free claims and participants in the ‘control’ condition rated identical products (including identical labelled alcohol and energy content) without claims. 

Results. Overall, alcohol products with nutrition and related claims were rated as significantly lower in sugar and kilojoules, healthier, less harmful to health, and more suitable for weight management and a healthy diet than those without (p=.002 to p<.001, except ‘natural’ claims did not influence ‘healthy diet’). Ratings of product appeal, perceived alcohol content, and intended consumption did not differ by condition, except that when products displayed a ‘natural’ claim, participants intended to consume a higher number of serves than when no claim was present. 

Conclusions. Nutrition and related marketing claims generate a health halo, whereby young adults mistakenly perceive alcohol products displaying those claims as healthier on many dimensions even in the presence of information to the contrary (e.g., equivalent labelled energy content). This form of marketing exploits the health- and weight-related motivations of some young people and should no longer be permitted on alcohol products, which are inherently energy-dense and harmful to health by virtue of their alcohol content.