Nutrition Facts Use by Young Adults: Predictors, Information Sought, and Relation to Dietary Intake
Authors: Christoph Mary J. , Larson Nicole I. , Laska Melissa N. , Neumark‐Sztainer Dianne 
Published: November 2023

Background

Nutrition labels are a low‐cost intervention with the potential to encourage more informed purchasing and eating habits. Our objective was to investigate correlates of frequent Nutrition Facts usage, describe which aspects of labels are most often looked at by label users, and investigate how Nutrition Facts usage relates to dietary intake in young adults.

Methods

Young adults (N = 1475) were surveyed as a part of Project EAT‐IV, the fourth wave of a 15‐year longitudinal cohort study wherein students were originally recruited in middle‐ or high‐schools in the Minneapolis‐St. Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. Surveys assessed nutrition label usage, the frequency of looking at specific information on labels, sociodemographics, anthropometrics, behavioral characteristics, and dietary intake using a semi‐quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Logistic regression was used to cross‐sectionally examine how demographic and behavioral factors are related to use of the Nutrition Facts label when deciding whether to purchase or consume a product for the first time; frequent use was defined as “most of the time” or “always”. Descriptive statistics were used to examine the types of information used by those who reported looking at the Nutrition Facts label. Adjusted means accounting for demographics, exercise, and weight status were used to investigate how label usage related to dietary outcomes (daily calories, servings of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy, sugar‐sweetened beverages, and monthly frequency of eating at fast‐food and sit‐down restaurants).

Results

Participants were on average 31.1 ± 1.6 (mean ± SD) years old, and 56.1% were female. Over a third (36.8%) of the sample reported using Nutrition Facts labels frequently. Being a frequent Nutrition Facts user was significantly related to being female, younger age, higher education, higher income, preparing food regularly at home, being overweight, and being physically active (p<0.05).

The types of information that label users reported using most often were total calories (73.3%), sugars (72.6%), serving size (69.8%), and the ingredient list (66.3%).

Adjusted means showed frequent label users consumed more daily servings of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains and fewer servings of dairy and sugar‐sweetened beverages (all p<0.05). Average daily energy intake did not differ between label users (1929 ± 40 kcal, mean ± SE) and non‐users (1983 ± 29 kcal, p=0.29). Label users reported eating at sit‐down restaurants (2.36 ± 0.04 times per month) more frequently than non‐users (2.25 ± 0.03, p=0.02), but less frequently at fast‐food restaurants compared to non‐users (10.3 ± 0.5 vs. 13.2 ± 0.4, p<0.01).

Conclusions

While nutrition label use was cross‐sectionally associated with markers of better dietary quality in a population‐based survey of young adults, only just over a third of participants surveyed used labels frequently. Those who were female, younger, had higher education and income, were overweight, physically active, and prepared food regularly at home reported more frequent label usage.

Support or Funding Information

This study was supported by Grant Number R01HL116892 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (PI: Dianne Neumark‐Sztainer). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute or the National Institutes of Health. M.J. Christoph is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under National Research Service Award (NRSA) in Primary Medical Care, grant no. T32HP22239 (PI: Borowsky). This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.