Muesli bars, milk products or even beverages - numerous products are marketed with a claim of "fitness" or making customers "fit". However, the deceiving labels have hidden dangers for consumers. This is the conclusion of a cooperative study performed by Full Prof. Dr. Jörg Königstorfer of the Chair for Sport and Health Sciences along with Prof. Hans Baumgartner from Pennsylvania State University.
The research group examined the influence of "fitness" labels on consumer behavior. "Fitness labels give products a deceptive and unjust aureole, which leads precisely those consumers who want to lose weight to be more likely to reach for these products," says Prof. Königstorfer.
Presence in the international media
The results of the study have been commented upon by various media, both nation and international, over the past three weeks. The Dean of Studies from the Faculty for Sport and Health Sciences is happy to say, "it is naturally pleasant to see when scientific results are not only reserved for this community alone, but can also incite interest on a broader basis".
US television news program
The influential "Journal of Marketing Research", the number one journal in the field of marketing, will be publishing the results of three partial studies in one of their next issues. The primary results, however, have already been published in advance by this reviewed journal in a press release.
As a reaction, "Health" and "Shape", two of the most popular US public magazines, reported on this. CBS News, a nationwide broadcasted program in the US seen every week by more than 100 million viewers, devoted about 3 minutes of their broadcasting time to the research results in "CBS this morning". The renowned US newspaper, the "Boston Globe", also published an article on their Online site, as well as being noted in the British tabloid newspaper, the "Daily Mail". The results were even published in China.
In Germany, this was reported in the Apotheken Umschau, a periodical with the largest circulation in the health sector with 9.4 million copies, in the Münchner Merkur as well as on the Microsoft-Portal msn.de. In this country, a total of more than 40 media companies handled this topic.
Three empirical studies - Nuts and raisins, with and without a "Fitness" label
For the study, the research group performed three empiric investigations. "We asked ourselves whether and how fitness labels affect the eating habits of the consumers," says Prof. Königstorfer. A plastic box with nuts and raisins was used as a stimulus for the study. For the experimental group, a "fitness" label was attached to the box, while a neutral box was sued for the control group.
In two investigations, the researchers then tested whether the 162 und 230 test subjects ate more of the raisins and nuts when the label indicating "Fitness" was on the box. The participants were told that they were to perform a taste test with a number of different evaluations and that they would have a total time of eight minutes for this. The test subjects should thereby imagine that they were eating a midnight snack in their own living room.
Result: Most prominent effect for those who are willing to lose weight
The most prominent effect of the fitness label was to be seen in persons who had indicated in the accompanying questionnaire that they had problems with their weight and would like to lose some weight. "This group ate more of the snacks that were offered than did the other study participants. They ate between 50 und 100 kilocalories," explains Königstorfer.
In the third study 144 participants were placed on an ergometer following the taste test. "We explained to them that we wanted to examine the interaction between nutritional intake and physical exercise," says Königstorfer. "Hereby, the test subjects could decide on their own, how long and how intensively they wanted to ride the bike."
Precisely those individuals who would like to lose weight, and who had previously taken in more calories, demonstrated a poorer performance on the ergometer. "Clearly these participants consider the 'fitter' nutrients to be a replacement for physical exercise," explains Königstorfer.
Prof. Königstorfer: Conscious nutrition and clarification
For the Full Professor at the Chair for Sport and Health Sciences, these results show that "fitness" labels can be alluring for the group of consumers who wish to lose weight. "This group has long learned that stereotypical products like potato chips or French fries should be avoided. The fitness label, however, provides those products which are not forbidden in principle, to be recognized as a type of aureole, which is dangerous because it acts in contrast to target of the consumer," summarizes Königstorfer.
According to Königstorfer, two things help in order to avoid being tricked by the deceiving label: Eating consciously and clarification. A first step in obtaining information has been achieved through the worldwide publication of the results.
To the Homepage of the Institute for Sport and Health Sciences
The CBS television news program
Publication: The Effect of Fitness Branding on Restrained Eaters' Food Consumption and Post-Consumption Physical Activity; Joerg Koenigstorfer, Hans Baumgartner; Journal of Marketing Research; doi: 10.1509/jmr.12.0429
Contact