How to Discourage People from Buying Soft Drinks

A new study conducted by American researchers reveals that informing people about the amount of exercise required to burn off the calories acquired from soft drinks would be more effective in discouraging them from buying such drinks instead of just displaying the calorie count.

Researchers from the John Hopkins University in Baltimore conducted an experiment by displaying three different signs at corner shops that sold soft drinks, containing an average of 250 calories per drink.

The first sign displayed the amount of calories the drink contained, the second sign displayed the equivalent percentage of the total recommended calorie intake for the day while the third sign suggested that a drink would require around an hour of running in order to burn off those calories.

The researchers found that while shops that displayed calorie count signs saw sales drop down by 40 percent, those that displayed the amount of exercise needed to burn the excess calories proved to be more effective with sales going down by more than 50 percent. The report has been published in the American Journal of Public Health.

"Providing easily understandable caloric information-particularly in the form of a physical activity equivalent, such as running-may reduce calorie intake from sugar-sweetened beverages and increase water consumption among low-income adolescents", lead researcher Dr Sarah Bleich said.



Source: Medindia