The effectiveness of a social media intervention for reducing portion sizes in young adults and adolescents
| Autor: | Barbara J. Rolls, Maxine Sharps, Marion M. Hetherington, Pam Blundell-Birtill, Charlotte E L Evans |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
030309 nutrition & dietetics
Eating behaviour 030209 endocrinology & metabolism Health Informatics Portion size Peers lcsh:Computer applications to medicine. Medical informatics Developmental psychology 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Health Information Management Intervention (counseling) Peer influence Social media 030212 general & internal medicine Young adult social norms Nutrition Nudging Original Research eating behaviour 0303 health sciences Health Policy peers Computer Science Applications Social norms nutrition nudging lcsh:R858-859.7 Psychology |
| Zdroj: | Digital Health Digital Health, Vol 5 (2019) |
| ISSN: | 2055-2076 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/2055207619878076 |
| Popis: | Objective Adolescents and young adults select larger portions of energy-dense food than recommended. The majority of young people have a social media profile, and peer influence on social media may moderate the size of portions selected. Methods Two pilot interventions examined whether exposure to images of peers’ portions of high-energy-dense (HED) snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) on social media (Instagram) would influence reported desired portions selected on a survey. Confederate peers posted ‘their’ portions of HED snacks and SSBs on Instagram. At baseline and intervention end participants completed surveys that assessed desired portion sizes. Results In intervention 1, undergraduate students ( n = 20, mean age=19.0 years, SD=0.65) participated in a two-week intervention in a within-subjects design. Participants reported smaller desired portions of HED snacks and SSBs following the intervention, and smaller desired portions of HED snacks for their peers. In intervention 2, adolescents ( n = 44, mean age = 14.4 years, SD = 1.06) participated in a four-week intervention ( n = 23) or control condition ( n = 21) in a between-subjects design. Intervention 2 did not influence adolescents to reduce their reported desired portion sizes of HED snacks or SSBs relative to control. Conclusions These preliminary studies demonstrated that social media is a feasible way to communicate with young people. However, while the intervention influenced young adults’ reported desired portions and social norms regarding their peers’ portions, no significant impact on desired reported portion sizes was found for HED snacks and SSBs in adolescents. Desired portion sizes of some foods and beverages may be resistant to change via a social media intervention in this age group. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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