two other sources

Source 1:

Part 1: Bibliographic Entry:

Harmon, K. (2011, January 14). Does Calorie-Labeling at Restaurants Lead to Healthier Eating? Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/calorie-labeling-menus/

Part 2: Summary

This article contained many questions from the author that was answered by Eric Finkelstein who is an associate professor at Duke University’s Global Health Institute.  There was a study conducted at an Asian-style fast food restaurant.  The customers were asked if they would like to downsize their meal to cut calories but the only 1/3 of the consumers took the offer.  The rate did not improve when calorie counts were posted, which Brian Elbel reported at the American Public Health Association meeting in 2010.  This difference suggested that some customers were willing to change their lunch routine but calorie figures did not affect others to overcome the “visceral urges” when they stepped up to place their order.

In January 2009 King Country in Washington State started requiring chain restaurants to make nutrition information available for all of its offerings including visceral calorie counts.  Researchers compared consumers’ food choices at several locations of the Mexican-style restaurant called Taco Time before and after calorie numbers were posted.  After a year of looking at the consumers that attended Taco Time, consumers were still not persuaded to ditch more of their beef Roma burritos which contains 843 calories compared to their regular chicken salads which contains 196 calories.  Overall, order calorie totals stayed relatively stable.

Part 3: Critical Reflection:

            I would like to know why consumers decided to stick to eating high calorie foods even when they know how many calories the food contains.  Why are people that attend fast food restaurants not interested in eating healthier? 

Part 4: Quotes:

“I would focus on kids and schools, and would ensure that kids are getting healthy foods in school, and are getting physical activity. I think focusing on adults is an uphill battle. I think having employers take a lead in encouraging healthy work sites—with government support—may have a change in getting some sustained behavior changes.”

“What incentive do you think would work best?  I'm not sure I'm in favor of taxing fast food, but I'm sure it would work.”

“The simple story is: consumers knew what they like, you gave them information, and they still buy it. It's actually not an irrational decision—it's got all the ingredients that people crave: sugar, salt, fats. Once you buy it and you start eating it, it's quite difficult to stop.”

Source 2:

Part 1: Bibliographic Entry:

B., J., & D. (2013, February 08). Looking at the label and beyond: The effects of calorie labels, health consciousness, and demographics on caloric intake in restaurants. Retrieved from https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1479-5868-10-21

Part 2: Summary

There was a study conducted with the purpose to explore the potential relationships between caloric intake and diners’ socio-economic characteristics and attitudes in a restaurant field experiment that systematically varied the caloric information printed on the menus.  This study was created because it was suggested that there was a possibility of heterogeneity in responses to caloric labels due to recent legislation that has required calorie labels on restaurant menus.  The field experiment was conducted in a full service restaurant where patrons were randomly selected to one of three menu treatments, which varied the amount of caloric information printed on the menus (none, numeric, or symbolic calorie label). 

“At the conclusion of their meals, diners were asked to complete a brief survey regarding their socio-economic characteristics, attitudes, and meal selections. Using regression analysis, we estimated the number of entrée and extra calories ordered by diners as a function of demographic and attitudinal variables. Additionally, irrespective of the menu treatment to which a subject was assigned, our study identified which types of people are likely to be low-, medium-, and high-calorie diners.”  Results showed that calorie labels had the greatest impact on those who are the least conscious about their own health.  Using a symbolic calorie label can possibly reduce the calorie intake of even the most health conscious patrons.  If numeric calorie labels are implemented, they are most likely to influence consumers who are less health conscious. 

Part 3: Critical Reflection:

            How do we make people more conscious about their own health?  How can we help people to care more about what they eat and what they weigh?  How can we educate the public about what calories are and how it can affect your diet and what you eat?

Part 4: Quotes:

“Finally, calorie labels were more likely to influence the selection of the main entrée as opposed to supplemental items such as drinks and desserts.”

“Unfortunately, numeric labels did little for those consumers who were already more knowledgeable about health and nutrition. To reach a broader group of diners, a symbolic calorie label may be preferred as it reduced caloric intake across all levels of health consciousness.”