Consumers: Just tell us what to eat

Issue: December 2015

LOS ANGELES — More people would rather lose $1,000 than gain 20 lbs., but most people think doing their own taxes is easier than figuring out what they should eat to stay healthy, according to Marianne Smith Edge, MS, RD, LD, FADA, senior advisor for science and consumer insights at the nonprofit International Food Information Council and Foundation, based on a decade of consumer surveys and research.

Speaking at ObesityWeek, Smith Edge described for her audience what consumers have been telling her through 10 years of surveys and warned that the messages urging people to eat healthy may not be reaching the right audiences.

Marianne Smith Edge

“When we ask consumers, ‘What have you been doing in the past year to have a healthy lifestyle,’ we see that folks are saying, ‘I’m trying to consume more fruits and vegetables,’” Smith Edge said. “And folks are saying, ‘I am trying to cut calories by drinking more low-calorie beverages, or eat more foods with whole grain.’ But when you really look into the groups who are more likely do it, the reality here is that the message maybe getting to those who are already motivated, and those who are already doing it.”

The surveys indicated similar results when consumers were asked what they would do with 4 extra hours in the day. According to Smith Edge, consumers typically said they would exercise more. The next most popular answer was socializing with friends and family.

However, 16% said they would watch more television, an answer most popular among the subgroups who identified themselves as in poor health, Smith Edge said.

“So the reality is, even when we see the positives, we have to ask, are we really changing the lifestyles of those who may need it the most?” Smith Edge said. “Are we really getting to the folks who need to hear the message?”

Lack of control

Smith Edge also noted that consumers seem confused by the glut of available information and messages in various media about what they should be eating to maintain a healthy diet. While she reported that most have taken at least one step toward attaining or maintaining a healthy lifestyle, many say they have trouble taking control of their lifestyle choices, due to time, stress and cost.

During the course of 2 years, Smith Edge asked consumers how much control they feel they have over their lifestyle choices and how much are they taking. According to the surveys, the rate of consumers who say they are taking control is declining.

“This year we asked the question again, and … it declined on how much control people are taking,” Smith Edge said. “So even though we know folks are saying, ‘I know I have [control],’ they are telling us they are taking less control than they were 2 years ago.”

In addition, while most consumers generally recognize the need to increase their physical activity and decrease their portion sizes, and most are taking action to be more healthy, there remain groups of people who are not receiving that message. Part of the reason why, according to Smith Edge, is that those who are most likely to believe statements in the media and food labels regarding healthy eating are those who are already seeking a more healthy lifestyle.

Misleading messages

Smith Edge also stated that consumers can sometimes be misled by the various messages they receive from television, print and online sources.

“In focus groups … they keep saying, ‘If I see the information written the same way in at least five different places, then it must be true,’” Smith Edge said. “I think that’s something for us to think about — what’s our consistency in messaging? Because many times for the consumer, they keep hearing it on the television, on the news and on social media, then it must be true.”

According to Smith Edge, only 9% of consumers say their belief in a message is based solely on scientific research. However, surveys last year indicated that more than half of consumers trust health care professionals in matters of weight loss, physical activity and nutrition — with about 70% reporting in this year’s survey that they trust their personal health care provider.

However, that does not seem to be the case for millennials — those aged 18 to 34 — who don’t trust anyone when it comes to health advice, according to Smith Edge.

“We’ve done a lot of segmentation when it comes to millennials, and we know they are highly skeptical of nutritional information from any source,” Smith Edge said. “We also know they obtain information on nutrition from a lot of different Internet-based sources, so it’s not that they wouldn’t trust someone who is a health professional, it’s just that they don’t really see one.”

Increasing complexity

In April 2012, in the midst of tax season, Smith Edge said the online survey asked consumers which was easier: Doing their own taxes, or figuring out what they should be eating. Most, she said, claimed it would be easier to do their taxes, adding they had trouble discerning all of the information they are exposed to on a daily basis.

The common refrain seemed to be, “Just tell us what to eat.”

“Four years ago, 64% of consumers basically said, ‘I’d rather hear what I should eat rather than what I should not eat,’” said Smith Edge. “Two years ago, 78% said, ‘Just tell me — I want to know what to eat.’ This year, again 78%, but we saw that go up to a more ‘strongly agree.’”

The answer for physicians, according to Smith Edge, is to understand the confusion their patients may be experiencing.

“Like taxes, food and health information is complex to understand for the consumer,” Smith Edge said. “But if we’re really going to move the needle, we must understand the role we play in the consumers’ lives, earn their trust and think beyond our current counseling strategies to really motivate consumers to adopt healthful lifestyles.” – by Jason Laday

Smith Edge M. Media messages: How to handle star struck patients. Presented at: ObesityWeek; Nov. 2-6, 2015; Los Angeles.

Disclosure: Smith Edge reports no relevant financial disclosures.