Department of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
Department of Primary Care and Mental Health, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
Int J Eat Disord. 2023 Nov;56(11):2049-2061. doi: 10.1002/eat.24031. Epub 2023 Jul 28.
We assessed perceptions of recently proposed UK obesity policies (mandatory calorie labeling, banning of advertisements of unhealthy food and drinks online and before 9 pm on TV, and banning "buy one get one free" deals for unhealthy food and drinks) in people with an eating disorder (ED) and other mental health conditions.
A total of 1273 participants with a self-reported lifetime mental health condition (N = 583 with an ED) completed an online survey in September-November 2022. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine support for and potential adverse effects of policies in participants with and without an ED. A qualitative analysis of the potential effects of the policy on current ED symptoms was also conducted to better understand how and why policies may be damaging or beneficial.
Participants with an ED had a lower level of support for the implementation of the calorie labeling policy compared to those without an ED (43% vs. 58%). Half of the participants with an ED (55%) reported that labeling may worsen their ED symptoms. Qualitative data indicated perceived potential harm (e.g., a gateway to relapse, negative effects on mood) and perceived benefits (e.g., feeling informed and reassured) of calorie labeling in participants with an ED. No differences in support or perceived harms of the other two policies were observed between participants with versus without an ED.
Future studies are warranted to explore the potential effects of calorie labeling and how to mitigate negative impacts on people with an ED.
This research is the first to assess the perceptions of UK obesity-related policies in people with an ED and other mental health conditions. Participants with an ED (vs. without) were more likely to disagree with the government implementing the calorie labeling policy. These findings highlight the potentially harmful effects of calorie labeling in people with an ED and the need for future research to understand how to mitigate negative impacts.
我们评估了人们对英国最近提出的肥胖政策（强制标注卡路里、禁止在线和晚上 9 点前在电视上发布不健康食品和饮料广告、禁止“买一送一”不健康食品和饮料促销活动）的看法，这些政策涉及患有饮食障碍（ED）和其他心理健康状况的人群。
共有 1273 名自报有终身心理健康状况的参与者（583 名有 ED）于 2022 年 9 月至 11 月完成了一项在线调查。使用多项逻辑回归来研究政策在有无 ED 的参与者中的支持情况和潜在不利影响。还对政策对当前 ED 症状的潜在影响进行了定性分析，以更好地理解政策为何可能有害或有益，以及如何产生影响。
与无 ED 参与者相比，ED 参与者对实施卡路里标签政策的支持程度较低（43%对 58%）。一半的 ED 参与者（55%）报告称标签可能会使他们的 ED 症状恶化。定性数据表明，ED 参与者认为标签可能带来潜在的危害（例如，复发的诱因，对情绪的负面影响）和好处（例如，感到知情和放心）。有无 ED 参与者对其他两项政策的支持或感知危害没有差异。
未来的研究有必要探索卡路里标签的潜在影响，以及如何减轻对 ED 患者的负面影响。
这项研究首次评估了 ED 和其他心理健康状况人群对英国肥胖相关政策的看法。与无 ED 参与者相比，ED 参与者（更有可能）不同意政府实施卡路里标签政策。这些发现强调了卡路里标签对 ED 患者可能产生的有害影响，以及需要开展未来研究以了解如何减轻负面影响。
