Two online randomised controlled trials examining effects of alcohol calorie labelling on hypothetical ordering of calories from alcohol and food.

BACKGROUND: Providing calorie information for alcoholic beverages is a potential public-health intervention which may serve to reduce alcohol use but also prevalence of overweight/obesity. Equivocal evidence has been found for the effectiveness of alcohol calorie information at reducing drinking intentions as well as purchasing and consumption. However, the extent at which calorie information 'on-trade' will impact consumer behaviour for both alcohol and food consumption has not been investigated. AIMS: (1) To examine the presence of alcohol calorie labelling for hypothetical purchasing of alcohol and food in typical UK restaurant scenarios. (2) To determine the characteristics of individuals who will be likely to choose to view alcohol calorie labels. METHODS: Two online randomised control trials using a hypothetical menu selection. In experiment one (N = 325) participants were randomised to the presence or absence of alcohol calorie labels. In experiment two (N = 1081) individuals were randomised to alcohol calorie labels absent or the choice to view alcohol calorie labels. The primary outcome for each study was calories ordered from alcoholic beverages. RESULTS: There was no evidence that the presence of alcohol calorie information on restaurant menus impacted the number of calories ordered from alcoholic beverages or from food and soft drinks. Younger individuals and individuals who exhibit greater motives for good health were more likely to choose to view alcohol calorie labels. CONCLUSIONS: In two online, hypothetical experiments there is no evidence for alcohol calorie labelling impacting consumer decisions to order alcohol or food. Given the choice, a self-selecting group of individuals who are more motivated by health concerns will view alcohol calorie labels, and in turn may be less likely to order alcohol.

Intra-individual trajectories of subjectively prioritizing health over other life domains.

Subjectively prioritizing health over other life domains is an indicator of health motivation and is associated with higher levels of health behaviors and more effective health behavior self-regulation. However, little is known about when individuals prioritize health over other life domains and which factors predict prioritizing health. Here, we examine 3644 older adults in Germany (mean age 60.79) over a period of 6-9 years from DEAS, a population-representative survey. Latent growth curves were estimated to examine individual change in prioritizing health. Socio-structural (gender, educational attainment) and indicators of health status (baseline status and change in [a] number of illnesses, [b] functional health, and [c] self-rated health) were tested as predictors of changes in health prioritization. Participants prioritized health over other life domains, and this increased over time. Women and those with worse health status (lower functional and lower self-rated health) prioritized health more than men and those with better health status, respectively. Lower educational attainment was associated with higher increases in prioritizing health, and interactions between educational status and health indicators show that increases are larger in those with worse health and lower educational attainment. This indicates individual differences in the degree and the changes of prioritizing health.

Motives for weight loss and weight loss maintenance: results from the MedWeight study.

BACKGROUND: The relationship of weight loss motives with long-term outcomes is equivocal. We aimed to examine differences in weight loss motives of maintainers and regainers, as well as explore associations between motives and successful maintenance. METHODS: The study sample includes 607 adults, with a history of overweight/obesity and self-reported ≥10% voluntary weight loss, 12 months before study entry. Participants were classified as maintainers (weighing ≤90% maximum weight) or regainers. Volunteers identified possible motives for weight loss and maintenance (maintainers only), from a specific list. RESULTS: Both maintainers and regainers were predominantly motivated by physical appearance (38.6% versus 39.9%, P > 0.05) and self-esteem (26.8% versus 32.0%, P > 0.05) for weight loss. Compared to regainers, more maintainers reported weight reduction driven by social purposes (16.6% versus 9.4%, P = 0.022) and less were prompted by friends/family to lose weight (21.1% versus 31.7%, P = 0.005). In maintainers, shifts in motives from weight loss to maintenance phase were found, including an increased prevalence of health motives (6.4% versus 9.6%, P < 0.001) and decreased physical appearance motives (38.6% versus 30.3%, P < 0.001). Reporting physical appearance as main maintenance motive was inversely associated with maintained weight loss, after adjusting for age, sex and years of education (B = -3.49 [1.07], P = 0.001); maintainers reporting physical appearance as the main motive maintained 3.5% less weight loss compared to those who did not (P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The present study has highlighted motivational influences associated with weight loss outcomes. Future studies should explore the ability of people with overweight/obesity to act upon motives for long-term weight management, as well as the impact of shifting through motives on the magnitude of maintenance.