Socioeconomic position, energy labelling and portion size selection: An online study comparing calorie and physical activity calorie equivalent (PACE) labelling in UK adults

Abstract

Limited research has examined the impact of energy labelling on portion size selection. It is also unclear whether physical activity calorie equivalent (PACE) is more effective than standard kilocalorie (kcal) energy labelling in promoting healthier dietary behaviour and whether effectiveness varies based on socioeconomic position (SEP). In the present online study, 1667 UK adults of lower and higher SEP made virtual portion size selections for 18 common main meal foods under one of four conditions: kcal labelling only, PACE labelling only, kcal and PACE labelling, no labelling. Contrary to predictions, participants in the kcal labelling condition (+55 kcal, p < 0.001) chose larger portion sizes compared to the no labelling condition, whereas the PACE labelling (−17 kcal, p = 0.065) and no labelling condition did not significantly differ. The presence of PACE information on labels was associated with selection of significantly smaller portions when compared to labels that only included kcal information. Effects of labels on portion size selection were not moderated by participant SEP in primary analyses. The present study of virtual portion size selections suggests that kcal labelling resulted in larger portion size selections than no labelling, but this counter-intuitive effect was attenuated when kcal and PACE labelling were combined. Further research examining the impact of PACE labelling on real-world food selection in participants of lower and higher SEP is now warranted.