School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, Wollongong 2522, New South Wales, Australia.
School of Health and Society, University of Wollongong, Wollongong 2522, New South Wales, Australia.
Nutrients. 2019 Jul 15;11(7):1604. doi: 10.3390/nu11071604.
Nutrition and health claims can promote healthier food choices but may lead to consumer confusion if misused. Regular monitoring of claims is therefore required. This study aimed to explore the prevalence of nutrition and health claims carried on breakfast cereals in supermarkets, and to assess claim compliance with regulations. Nutrition and health claims on breakfast cereal products across five supermarkets in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia, were recorded in a cross-sectional audit. Prevalence of claim type and claim compliance was determined. Claims were compared across categories of breakfast cereal. Almost all (95.7%) products audited carried at least one nutrition or health claim; nutrition content ( = 1096) was more prevalent than health claims ( = 213). Most claims (91.6%) were compliant with regulations. Additionally, claim prevalence and type differed according to breakfast cereal category, with the highest proportion of claims appearing on 'health and wellbeing' and 'muesli' products. There is a high prevalence of nutrition and health claims on breakfast cereals, with most claims compliant with regulations. Research should investigate consumer interpretation of claims and the impact of applying nutrient profiling for all claims to assist consumers to make informed health choices.
营养和健康声称可以促进更健康的食物选择，但如果使用不当，可能会导致消费者混淆。因此，需要定期监测声称。本研究旨在探讨澳大利亚新南威尔士州伊拉瓦拉地区五家超市销售的早餐谷类食品上营养和健康声称的流行情况，并评估声称是否符合法规。本研究采用横断面审计的方法，记录了澳大利亚新南威尔士州伊拉瓦拉地区五家超市的早餐谷物产品上的营养和健康声称。确定了声称类型的流行程度和声称的合规性。比较了不同早餐谷物类别的声称。审核的几乎所有产品（95.7%）都至少带有一个营养或健康声称；营养成分声称（=1096）比健康声称（=213）更为普遍。大多数声称（91.6%）符合法规。此外，根据早餐谷物类别，声称的流行程度和类型也有所不同，声称出现在“健康与幸福”和“什锦麦片”产品上的比例最高。早餐谷物上的营养和健康声称很普遍，大多数声称都符合法规。研究应调查消费者对声称的解释，以及对所有声称应用营养成分谱进行分析以帮助消费者做出明智的健康选择的影响。
