title: Reducing high calorie snack food in young adults: a role for social norms and health based messages.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Consumption of high calorie junk foods has increased recently, especially among young adults and higher intake may cause weight gain. There is a need to develop public health approaches to motivate people to reduce their intake of junk food.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To assess the effect of health and social norm messages on high calorie snack food intake (a type of junk food) as a function of usual intake of junk food.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a between-subjects design, 129 young adults (45 men and 84 women, mean age = 22.4 years, SD = 4.5) were assigned to one of three conditions: 1) a social norm condition, in which participants saw a message about the junk food eating habits of others; 2) a health condition, in which participants saw a message outlining the health benefits of reducing junk food consumption and; 3) a control condition, in which participants saw a non-food related message. After exposure to the poster messages, participants consumed a snack and the choice and amount of snack food consumed was examined covertly. We also examined whether usual intake of junk food moderated the effect of message type on high calorie snack food intake.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The amount of high calorie snack food consumed was significantly lower in both the health and the social norm message condition compared with the control message condition (36% and 28%, both p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in snack food or energy intake between the health and social norm message conditions. There was no evidence that the effect of the messages depended upon usual consumption of junk food.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Messages about the health effects of junk food and social normative messages about intake of junk food can motivate people to reduce their consumption of high calorie snack food.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Robinson
authors.forename: Ellis
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Aveyard
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Higgs
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002149:Energy Intake; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control; D011634:Public Health; D062410:Snacks; D066262:Social Norms; D014675:Vegetables; D015430:Weight Gain; D055815:Young Adult