Does Installing “Healthy Eating Information” in a University Dining Hall Change Students’ Food and Beverage Choices?

Abstract

The objective was to determine if the installation of “healthy eating information” in a University dining hall would influence students’ food and beverage choices. This was a pre‐post, population nutrition intervention conducted in a buffet‐style cafeteria between September 2014 and April 2015. The intervention encouraged students to “fill half their plate with fruits and vegetables” and illustrated the number of minutes of jogging it takes to burn the calories in each beverage option. The beverage choices, as well as visits to the vegetable and fruit bar, were recorded on twelve menu‐matched occasions before and after the intervention. Inventory data was collected to determine the total liters of each beverage taken and the number of fruit cases ordered. There was a significant decrease in the proportion of students selecting a sugar‐sweetened beverage before (49% of the population) versus after (41%) the intervention (p=0.004). There was also a significant increase in the proportion of students drinking water before (43%) versus after (54%) the intervention (p<0.001). There were no significant changes in the proportion of students selecting each individual type of beverage and there was no change in the volume (ml) of each beverage taken. There was a significant increase in the number of students taking fruit before (30% of the population) versus after (36%) the intervention (p<0.001). And the number of students visiting the vegetable bar significantly increased from 60% to 72% (p<0.001). Similar trends were seen in the inventory data. These results illustrate that providing healthy eating information in settings where food choices are made, such as cafeterias, could encourage healthier choices.Support or Funding InformationVanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (MS), McHenry Unrestricted Research Grant (ML)