Even though many people claim they pay attention to food nutrition labels, few actually read the fine print. These are the results of a study just published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Research.
In the study, 203 people from Minnesota, mostly white women, were asked to look at computer images of 64 different foods. Unbeknownst to the participants, an eye-tracking device recorded how long they spent viewing each component of the food label. Following the simulation, the participants completed a questionnaire on their typical shopping habits.
The discrepancy between the survey and simulation results was rather profound: While a third of survey participants responded that they normally look at calorie content on nutrition labels, the eye-tracker found that only 9 percent actually viewed this information. Even fewer participants spent time looking at other components, yet 20 percent answered that they generally pay attention to trans fats and 24 percent said they look at sugar content.
The data did show, however, that labels that were centered on food packages received more attention than those placed on the sides. ACSH s Dr. Ruth Kava agrees that nutrition label placement is important, but she is also disappointed that people aren t looking at the information displayed on these labels. At least to the small extent that they are using the labels, she says, people are looking at important things, like calorie counts. But I wonder if that actually gets translated into purchasing decisions, which was beyond the focus of the current study but would be interesting to investigate.
Given the amount of attention that nutrition labels have garnered recently, especially in terms of calls to simplify them, ACSH s Dr. Elizabeth Whelan agrees that an overload of details doesn t seem to pay off. Most people, she says, aren t paying attention to these labels as much as they should be.