Informing the calorie intake of the menu helps combat overweight

A study conducted by the University of Alicante, Spain, in collaboration with various North American universities, confirms The usefulness of reporting the calorie content of restaurant menus to combat overweight.

The work, published in The Journal of the European Economic Association under the title 'Calorie Publication in Restaurants, Obesity and Consumer Well-being', is signed by researchers Charles Courtemanche (University of Kentucky), David Frisvold (University of Iowa), Marietou Ouayogode (University of Wisconsin), Michael K. Price (University of Alabama) and David Jiménez, from the Department of Foundations of Economic Analysis (FAE) of the University of Alicante (UA).

Research suggests that increasing calorie information for each menu item reduces overweight among consumers, the UA reported in a statement last Monday.

Specifically, according to studies conducted using data from the United States, the reduction in Body Mass Index (BMI) is 0.19 points in obese clients.

"This isn't a significant decrease for those who are overweight or obese, but it confirms that it's a measure that has positive effects as a health policy against obesity and that can be addressed in response to the overweight phenomenon in Western societies. Without a doubt, the more information there is, the better the consumer response, which translates into a reduction in calorie consumption," Jiménez explained.

Negative effect detected in people with adequate weight

However, the researcher has specified that there is a negative effect on people of adequate weight or even those whose BMI is below the recommended limit. The study finds that in cases with a lower BMI, there is also an influence on reducing caloric intake below their needs, in addition to affecting their sense of "well-being."

The analysis of the level of "well-being" is fundamental to this work, since it is a variable that has also been measured based on study and consumption data, which has been developed over years by comparing data from similar territories where the calorie information on menus was and was not applied.

Above all, because the study by the authors of the article sought to measure not only the impact of mandatory calorie reporting, but also the reasons for customers' responses to the behavioral incentives presented to them.

The objective of the analysis was to determine the differences in response between customers who had calorie information about their menu and those who did not.

In fact, calorie information on menus has a very clear effect due to the "moral cost" of knowing that eating a food with the knowledge that it could be considered excessive, which could produce guilt, discomfort, or unease, feelings that influence customers' decisions about eating in relation to their weight level.

But, and here is one of the most interesting elements of the study, in those people whose BMI is below the recommended level, a double negative effect occurs: They reduce their caloric intake and the information affects their feeling of "well-being."

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