Investigation of the 1-week effect of traffic light nutrition labeling on diet selection among Japanese university students: a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The method of displaying nutrition information labels on the front of food packaging (FOP: Front of Pack) has been implemented worldwide to prevent lifestyle-related diseases. This study aimed to investigate whether the use of the UK's Traffic Light Food (TLF) label, known as the FOP label, influences the dietary choices of Japanese youth and promotes healthy dietary choices. METHODS: Diet selection was performed for one week each during the baseline and intervention periods. During the intervention period, TLF labels were displayed on meal images of the intervention group. Participants chose what they would like to have for dinner of the day from 15 images. Each meal was scored based on the color of the nutrition label, and a comparison between groups was made to determine whether TLF labeling influenced meal selection for dinner. The psychological stress caused by the presence or absence of nutrition labels and nutritional components when choosing meals was also evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 69 participants were randomly assigned to two groups. Dietary choice scores indicated that the TLF-labeled group made significantly healthier dietary choices than the unlabeled group. Additionally, the TLF-labeled group showed a significant increase in the percentage of people conscious of nutritional components when choosing meals. Furthermore, a significant increase in the number of people conscious of protein, a nutritional ingredient not indicated on the TLF label, was observed. During the test period, no difference in psychological stress caused by the presence and absence of the TLF labels was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The use of TLF labels also encouraged healthy dietary choices among Japanese university students. The use of FOP nutrition labels should be considered in Japan to prevent lifestyle-related diseases through healthy dietary choices. TRIAL REGISTRATION: UMIN Clinical Trials Registry Number: UMIN000047268. Registered March 23, 2022.

Evaluating the effectiveness of applying aroma seals to masks in reducing stress caused by wearing masks: A randomized controlled trial.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks on patients and healthy people have been recommended to prevent airborne transmission of the virus. This increased the number of people who felt stressed while wearing masks. In this study, we investigated the stress-relieving effects of attaching aroma seals to masks. A double-blind, randomized controlled trial was conducted involving 62 university students. The participants were randomly assigned to two groups and instructed to apply a seal to their masks once a day throughout the study period. The primary measure used was the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), while the secondary measures included the assessment of breathlessness associated with mask-wearing and the World Health Organization Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5). The intervention group, referred to as the aroma-seal use group, utilized aroma seals infused with orange-lime essential oil with the expectation of experiencing the healing effects of citrus. On the other hand, the non-intervention group, known as the placebo-seal use group, utilized identical seals without any aroma. Results indicated that the aroma-seal use group exhibited significant improvements in both the total DASS-21 scores and depression scores compared to their baseline values by the second week of the intervention. Furthermore, the aroma-seal use group demonstrated a reduced occurrence of breathlessness while wearing masks compared to the placebo-seal group. Additionally, when assessing the item "I have felt calm and relaxed" from the WHO-5 questionnaire, the aroma-seal use group displayed significantly higher scores than the placebo group. Therefore, using aroma seals containing orange-lime essential oil could be beneficial in relieving mental stress and reducing breathlessness while wearing a mask, thus improving mental health.

Effectiveness of Displaying Traffic Light Food Labels on the Front of Food Packages in Japanese University Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Nutrition labeling on the front of food packages has been implemented worldwide to help improve public health awareness. In this randomized double-blind controlled trial, we used a Google Forms questionnaire to evaluate the effectiveness of nutrition labeling on food packages in university students. The questionnaire, ultimately completed by 247 students, included 15 dietary images from which they were asked to choose what they wanted to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner the following day. For the interventional (traffic light food [TLF]) group only, TLF labels were displayed on dietary images. This group had a significantly higher proportion of people conscious of healthy eating during all meals than the control group, and the effect of TLF labeling on choosing meals was the highest for lunch. In addition to the indicated nutritional components, the TLF group had a significantly higher proportion of people who were conscious of the ones of protein and dietary fiber that were not indicated on the label. The use of TLF labels resulted in an increase in the proportion of people choosing a healthy diet as well as being conscious of their nutritional components. Therefore, the use of TLF labels may help promote healthy dietary choices in Japan.