The effect of providing nutritional information about fast-food restaurant menus on parents' meal choices for their children.
- Author:
Jae Young AHN
1
;
Hae Ryun PARK
;
Kiwon LEE
;
Sooyoun KWON
;
Soyeong KIM
;
Jihye YANG
;
Kyung Hee SONG
;
Youngmi LEE
Author Information
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords: Fast-food restaurant; nutritional labeling; children; parents; meal choice
- MeSH: Child*; Food Labeling; Humans; Korea; Meals*; Nutritive Value; Parents; Power (Psychology); Restaurants*
- From:Nutrition Research and Practice 2015;9(6):667-672
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
- Abstract: BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: To encourage healthier food choices for children in fast-food restaurants, many initiatives have been proposed. This study aimed to examine the effect of disclosing nutritional information on parents' meal choices for their children at fast-food restaurants in South Korea. SUBJECTS/METHODS: An online experimental survey using a menu board was conducted with 242 parents of children aged 2-12 years who dined with them at fast-food restaurants at least once a month. Participants were classified into two groups: the low-calorie group (n = 41) who chose at least one of the lowest calorie meals in each menu category, and the high-calorie group (n = 201) who did not. The attributes including perceived empowerment, use of provided nutritional information, and perceived difficulties were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The low-calorie group perceived significantly higher empowerment with the nutritional information provided than did the high-calorie group (P = 0.020). Additionally, the low-calorie group was more interested in nutrition labeling (P < 0.001) and considered the nutritional value of menus when selecting restaurants for their children more than did the high-calorie group (P = 0.017). The low-calorie group used the nutritional information provided when choosing meals for their children significantly more than did the high-calorie group (P < 0.001), but the high-calorie group had greater difficulty using the nutritional information provided (P = 0.012). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that improving the empowerment of parents using nutritional information could be a strategy for promoting healthier parental food choices for their children at fast-food restaurants.
