Abstract
Introduction: Snacking is suspected to have an association with overweight and obesity in children, due to the higher caloric intake of snacks, which consumption is promoted by advertising and branding..
Methods: 96 children between 6 and 11 years old have been randomized to three groups: No exposure to TV, Exposure to TV and Exposure to TV and advertising. All children were asked to eat ad libitum during the afternoon break a set of sweet snacks. The sample has been stratified according to age, gender and brand awareness, which was assessed via a flash card based instrument. The study was designed to have a 0.80 power to detect a 0.5 SD units difference between either exposure groups and the no-exposure. Total quantity in grams and overall intake in calories has been computed after a 20 minutes time of eating. Analyses have been based on ANCOVA and adjusted by socioeconomic status. Results: Mean (SD) amount eaten and mean (SD) calories intake are shown below.
Low Brand Awareness
Quantity (grams) NoTV:76.5(8) TV:77(10) TV+Advertising:76(10)
Calories NoTV:331(41) TV:337(32) TV+Advertising:338(39)
High Brand Awareness
Quantity (grams) NoTV:78.7(10) TV:80(11) TV+Advertising:77(11)
Calories NoTV:338(37) TV:341(32) TV+Adertising:334(43)
No significant difference are emerging.
Conclusion: In an ad libitum eating experiment on snacks, awareness of branding does not seem to have an effect on the amount eaten both in terms of caloric intake and of overall quantity. This is also not changing according to TV exposure.
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Gregori, D., Franchin, L. & MERENDA Study Group. 417 Results From the Merenda Cross Over Trial: Evaluating the Effect of Brand on Ad Libitum Snacking After School Free Time. Pediatr Res 68 (Suppl 1), 214 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-201011001-00417
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-201011001-00417