The influence of “Guiding Stars” on perception and choice of foods at a 4‐year university

Abstract

“Guiding Stars” ™ (GS) is a point of purchase, consumer tool developed in 2006 that uses a nutrient density algorithm to categorize foods as good (one star), better (2 stars) or best (3 stars). GS was originally designed for grocery stores. The University of New Hampshire has adopted GS as a nutrition guidance tool for its students. The goal of this study was to determine if the presence of GS in the Union Court (UC) influenced 18 to 24 year old students’ perception and choice of foods. A 4‐question survey was devised to determine demographics, nutrition education background, ease of identifying healthy food choices, and factors influencing food selections, of UC patrons. The survey was conducted in November 2011 (pre‐GS, n=194) and after GS was introduced to the UC in April 2012 (post‐GS, n=199). Survey results revealed that students did not perceive that GS influenced their food selections, but did perceive that healthy food choices were significantly more available after GS (49%) than before GS (34%). After GS, students significantly decreased their perception that healthy foods were rarely/never available, from 22% to 8%, compared to before GS. Regardless of the presence of GS, a prior nutrition course was found to significantly increase, by 2‐fold, student awareness of the nutrient content/health of a food and posted nutrition/calorie information. Although students report that GS did not influence their food choices, GS did increase student perception that healthy foods were readily available at the UC. Whether this perception will translate into changes in food choices, remains to be determined. Supported by NHAES grant NH00541