Children's Menus Research Articles

Hak Anak Dalam Prinsip Bisnis DI Industri Hotel (Studi Kasus Hotel di Kota Bandung dan Subang)

Kota Bandung dan Subang merupakan tempat wisata yang menawarkan berbagai hiburan terutama bagi wisatawan keluarga dalam menghabiskan waktu liburannya. Dalam mendukung kenyamanan dan pelayanan agar wisatawan selama menghabiskan waktunya, maka perlu fasilitas pendukung mulai dari hotel dan restoran yang tidak hanya menawarkan pelayanan untuk tamu dewasa namun juga untuk tamu anak-anak. Kehadiran tamu anak-anak masih sering dianggap minoritas oleh pelaku usaha hotel. Hal ini terlihat dari beberapa hotel yang belum mempertimbangkan tentang menu anak dan fasilitas baik berupa produk maupun pelayanan yang memberikan rasa kenyamanan dan keamanan. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian kuantitatif deskriptif dengan sampel hotel yang di Bandung dan Subang dimana tamunya adalah keluarga. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk melihat seberapa penting menu dan fasilitas anak yang dimiliki oleh pengusaha hotel di Kota Bandung dan Subang. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa ekspektasi tamu hotel terkait pelayanan dan fasilitas hotel memiliki nilai interval > 4.21 yang berarti sangat penting. Penilaian dengan nilai tertinggi condong kepada atribut kolam renang dan taman air, kegiatan dan ruang bermain anak serta menu anak lengkap.

Development and testing of two tools to assess point-of-sale food and beverage marketing to children in restaurants.

To describe the development and testing of two assessment tools designed to assess exterior (including drive-thru) and interior food and beverage marketing in restaurants with a focus on marketing to children and teens. A scoping review on restaurant marketing to children was undertaken, followed by expert and government consultations to produce a draft assessment tool. The draft tool was mounted online and further refined into two separate tools: the Canadian Marketing Assessment Tool for Restaurants (CMAT-R) and the CMAT-Photo Coding Tool (CMAT-PCT). The tools were tested to assess inter-rater reliability using Cohen's Kappa and per cent agreement for dichotomous variables, and intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) for continuous or rank-order variables. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Restaurants of all types were assessed using the CMAT-R (n 57), and thirty randomly selected photos were coded using the CMAT-PCT. The CMAT-R collected data on general promotions and restaurant features, drive-thru features, the children's menu and the dollar/value menu. The CMAT-PCT collected data on advertisement features, features considered appealing to children and teens, and characters. The inter-rater reliability of the CMAT-R tool was strong (mean per cent agreement was 92·4 %, mean Cohen's κ = 0·82 for all dichotomous variables and mean ICC = 0·961 for continuous/count variables). The mean per cent agreement for the CMAT-PCT across items was 97·3 %, and mean Cohen's κ across items was 0·91, indicating very strong inter-rater reliability. The tools assess restaurant food and beverage marketing. Both showed high inter-rater reliability and can be adapted to better suit other contexts.

Nutritional quality of children's menus in restaurants: does cuisine type matter?

It is unknown whether the nutritional quality of children's menus varies depending on the cuisine type. This study aimed to investigate differences in the nutritional quality of children's menus by cuisine type in restaurants located in Perth, Western Australia (WA). Cross-sectional study. Perth, WA. Children's menus (n 139) from the five most prevalent restaurant cuisine types in Perth (i.e. Chinese, Modern Australian, Italian, Indian and Japanese) were assessed using the Children's Menu Assessment Tool (CMAT; range -5-21 with lower scores denoting lower nutritional quality) and the Food Traffic Light system, evaluated against Healthy Options WA Food and Nutrition Policy recommendations. Non-parametric ANOVA was used to test for a significant difference in total CMAT scores among cuisine types. Total CMAT scores were low for all cuisine types (range -2-5), with a significant difference between cuisine types (Kruskal-Wallis H = 58·8, P < 0·001). The highest total CMAT score by cuisine type was Modern Australian (mean = 2·27, sd = 1·41) followed by Italian (mean = 2·02, sd = 1·02), Japanese (mean = 1·80, sd = 2·39), Indian (mean = 0·30, sd = 0·97) and Chinese (mean = 0·07, sd = 0·83). When using the Food Traffic Light for assessment, Japanese cuisine had the highest percentage of green food items (44 %), followed by Italian (42 %), Modern Australian (38 %), Indian (17 %) and Chinese (14 %). Overall, the nutritional quality of children's menus was poor regardless of cuisine type. However, children's menus from Japanese, Italian and Modern Australian restaurants scored better in terms of nutritional quality than children's menus from Chinese and Indian restaurants.

ВИКОРИСТАННЯ ГАРБУЗА ПРИ ВИРОБНИЦТВІ КОТЛЕТ РИБНИХ ДИТЯЧИХ

Modern baby food is characterized by a marked deterioration in children's eating habits. Unhealthy foods (snacks and sweets) are increasingly appearing in children's diets, and the amount of nutritionally valuable foods (vegetables, fish, etc.) is significantly decreasing. That is why it is important to introduce dishes with a balanced nutritional composition into children's diets.An analysis of research and publications in the field of baby food technology has shown that little attention has been paid to the development of recipes for multicomponent fish dishes for the children's menu of hotel and restaurant business estab-lishments in the scientific literature today.The aim of the article is to substantiate the recipe for children's fish cutlets "Pumpkin" with enrichment with functional ingredients to increase the biological value and improve the organoleptic properties of the finished dish.The recipe of children's fish cutlets "Pumpkin" was developed by completely replacing the main fish raw material in the traditional recipe of amateur fish cakes with cod fillets with the addition of pumpkin purée and completely replacing the aux-iliary raw materials with rye bread, quail eggs, almond milk, olive oil. Samples of the new dish were made, its organoleptic and physicochemical quality indicators were studied, and its biological value was calculated. A comprehensive assessment of the quality of children's fish cutlets "Pumpkin" was carried out using the Harrington method.Fish cutlets for children "Pumpkin" have a simple technological process of preparation and can be included in the children's menu of hotel and restaurant business establishments

Nutritional quality of children's menus in restaurants: does cuisine type matter?

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Nudging low-medium income mothers towards healthy child options in an online restaurant scenario

Helping mothers make the healthiest choices for their children when eating out can contribute to preventing the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity, particularly in economically disadvantaged classes. Herein, we tested whether two different nudges (a default option and a social norm prompt) could guide low- and middle-income mothers towards healthier children's menu choices in a fictive restaurant setting and investigated the drivers of healthy child menu selection. A cross-sectional online survey was performed among 809 Italian mothers with children aged between 3 and 12 years, and a between-subjects design (control, nudge 1, and nudge 2) was applied. The findings revealed that both nudges had no significant effect on the number of healthy menu selections compared with the healthy choices made in the control condition. Furthermore, considering the entire sample, the results show that certain characteristics of a mother (e.g., authoritative parenting style) and child (younger age) duo increase the likelihood of the former selecting a healthy children's menu. Similarly, a positive correlation between the likelihood of choosing a healthy children's menu and the mother's involvement in the child's nutrition (meal preparation and weekly diet) was observed.

Differences in energy and nutrient content of menu items served by large chain restaurants in the USA and the UK in 2018.

To quantify the sector-wide energy and nutritional differences of both adult and children's restaurant menu items in the UK and the USA in 2018. Cross-sectional study. Energy and nutritional information provided on restaurant websites. Menu items (n 40 902) served by forty-two large UK chains and ninety-six large USA chains. Mean absolute energy, fat and saturated fat values were higher in USA menu items. For example, the mean adjusted per-item differences of adult menu items between the USA and the UK were 45·6 kcal for energy and 3·2 g for fat. Comparable figures for children's menu items were 43·7 kcal and 4 g. Compared with UK menu items, USA adult menu items also had higher sugar content (3·2 g, 95 % CI (0·5, 6)), and children's menu items had higher Na content (181·1 mg, 95 % CI (108·4, 253·7)). Overall, 96·8 % of UK and 95·8 % of USA menu items exceeded recommended levels for at least one of Na, fat, saturated fat or sugars. Menu items served by large chain restaurants had higher mean absolute levels of energy, fat and saturated fat in the USA compared with the UK. UK adult menu items were also lower in sugars compared with the USA ones and children's items lower in Na. As more than 95 % of all items were considered to have high levels of at least one nutrient of public health concern in the USA and the UK, improvements in restaurant menu items are needed in both countries.

Children’s menus in shopping centre restaurants: a multicentric study

PurposeThe aim of this study is to identify and characterize kids' menu offer in fast-food and traditional restaurants located in shopping centres in five different countries.Design/methodology/approachAn observational cross-sectional study is carried out, though a study was performed in all restaurants located in shopping centres from main cities, in five countries: Brazil, Chile, Croatia, Hungary and Portugal. A tool for assessing the quality of menus is used for the analysis (Kids Menu Healthy Score (KIMEHS)). Menu prices between countries were compared.FindingsA total of 192 kids' menus were collected, 44 in Portugal, 57 in Brazil, 66 in Chile, 15 in Hungary and 10 in Croatia. All the countries have average negative KIMEHS values for the menus, indicating that the offer is generally poor in terms of healthy options. The cost of children's menus in European countries is generally low. In Brazil, the price is significantly more expensive, which may limit the accessibility by social economically deprived populations. No significant differences were found in the average cost of meals from different restaurants typology. Traditional/Western restaurants present the highest price.Practical implicationsGlobally, kids' menus are composed by unhealthy food items, pointing to the need of improvements in food availability, aiming to promote healthy food habits among children.Originality/valueThis study presents innovative data on children's menus, allowing for characterization of meals offered to children and comparison between different countries.Key pointsKids’ menus are composed by unhealthy food items.Improvement of kids' menus quality will promote children food habits.Healthier out-of-home food consumption will contribute to public health.

Switching up sides: Using choice architecture to alter children's menus in restaurants

U.S. children's frequent consumption of restaurant foods has been associated with low vegetable consumption. Use of choice architecture in restaurants has been shown to increase children's orders of healthy sides, but what children consume when healthy sides are included is unknown. The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether altering the choice architecture of children's meals by restructuring the menu, using optimal defaults and vice-virtue bundles, would impact ordering of side dishes and consumption of a vegetable side dish during a restaurant meal. Families with a child between 4-8y attended three dinners at a university-based restaurant. Children's meals included choice of entree (macaroni-and-cheese or chicken tenders) and default side: all carrots (150 g; Menu-1), small fries (50 g)/large carrots (100 g; Menu-2), and small carrots (50 g)/large fries (100 g; Menu-3). Participants could opt-out of the default side for: only fries (Menu-1) or only fries or carrots (Menus-2/3). All foods were pre- and post-weighed to determine consumption. Descriptive statistics examined children's ordering behavior. Repeated measures ANOVA examined differences in consumption of study foods. A paired samples t-test examined differences in french fry consumption (Menus-2/3). Forty-eight children (6.2 ± 1.3 years; 25 male) participated. Most children remained with the default side (Meal-1: 90%; Meal-2: 88%; Meal-3: 85%). Significant differences were seen in children's consumption of french fries (t = −2.57, p = .014) where children ate more during meal 3 compared to meal 2. There were no significant differences in carrot consumption. Use of optimal defaults led to increased orders of healthy sides and steady consumption across the meal conditions. However, use of an optimal, vice-virtue bundle led to a decrease in consumption of french fries. Further investigation of optimal default use on children's menus is warranted.

Marketing to Children Inside Quick Service Restaurants: Differences by Community Demographics

In the U.S., children regularly consume foods from quick-service restaurants, but little is known about the marketing strategies currently used inside quick-service restaurants. This study aims to validate a child-focused Environmental Assessment Tool for quick-service restaurants, evaluate marketing strategies inside and on the exterior of quick-service restaurants, and examine differences by community race/ethnicity or income. The inter-rater and test-retest reliability of the Environmental Assessment Tool were assessed across the top 5 national quick-service restaurant chains. Marketing techniques in 165 quick-service restaurants (33 per national chain) in socioeconomically and racially/ethnically diverse communities throughout New England were examined in 2018-2019. Mixed methods ANOVA examined the differences in marketing techniques in 2020. The inter-rater and test-retest reliability of the Environmental Assessment Tool were high (Cohen's κ>0.80). Approximately 95% of quick-service restaurants marketed less healthy foods, whereas only 6.5% marketed healthy options. When examining the differences by community demographics, there were significantly more price promotion advertisements inside and on the exterior of quick-service restaurants in lower-income communities. In addition, there was a greater number of child-directed advertisements with cartoon or TV/movie characters as well as fewer healthy entrée options and more sugar-sweetened beverage and dessert options on the children's menu inside quick-service restaurants in communities with higher minority populations. Environmental Assessment Tool is a valid tool to evaluate marketing inside quick-service restaurants. Results suggest that there is a substantial amount of unhealthy food and beverage marketing inside quick-service restaurants, with differences in the number and types of techniques used in lower-income and minority communities. Policies that limit quick-service restaurant marketing to children should be considered.

Pelatihan menu sehat balita dalam upaya pencegahan stunting di Desa Ranah Singkuang Kecamatan Kampar

Ranah Singkuang is one of 10 villages classified as stunting villages in the Kampar regency area with a percentage of 24%. The Kampar District Government has done prevention programs on stunting condition from 2018 to 2019. If not treated immediately, the condition of stunting will affect the quality of human resources in the future. The condition of stunting causes children not to grow normally, low IQ, susceptible to infectious diseases as a result of low productivity, and difficulty competing in the world of work. The purpose of this community service activity is the transfer of knowledge to the community in Ranah Singkuang village, increasing the knowledge and ability of village community in terms of processing various kinds of fish-based products that have high nutritional values that are salable in the market in order to boost the community’s economy, provide knowledge about children's health by providing education to the community and training children's healthy menus so that their appetite increases. The result achieved from this community service activity are that the community understands more about the importance of nutrition for toddlers especially before the age of 1000 days and the community can process fish-based food, so that stunting problems in the village can be prevented.

Parental food choices for children when eating out: attitudes and impact of healthy choice menu labelling based on a hypothetical scenario.

To understand how healthy menu labelling information is used by parents/caregivers and where it fits within predictors of healthy meal choices when eating out. Parents were recruited to complete a 15-min observational, online survey regarding their experiences and hypothetical choices when eating out with their child/ren. Australia. Eligible participants had one or more child/ren aged between 2 and 12 years and attended cafes, restaurants, hotels and clubs (CRHC) for lunch or dinner at least four times a year. Of initial respondents (n 1802), 92·5 % provided complete and valid data. Participants were 84·7 % female, ranging from 18 to 68 years old. 98·3 % believed that healthier alternatives should be available for children in CRHC. For general food choices, health was a strong motivator (45·7 %); however, parents reported eating at CRHC mainly for pleasure or a treat (61·2 %) and being driven by children's taste preferences (85·9 %) when selecting menu items. 59·0 % of orders included a combination of healthy and traditional items. 42·0 % of the sample were influenced by the healthy choice (HC) labelling. Multiple regression revealed that, in addition to some demographic variables, the percent of HC ordered was positively associated with self-reported parent vegetable consumption, making food choices for the children for health reasons, familiarity with HC items and making order choices due to dietary needs and good nutrition. Despite a preference for availability of healthier children's menu choices in CRHC, menu labelling highlighting healthy options may have limited impact relative to child preferences.

Children-menus in restaurants of Portuguese, Hungarian and Croatian shopping centres: A qualitative study

Abstract Background Families to eat out frequently use shopping centres and, there is evidence that children's menus are poor nutritional quality. Obesity rates have increased all over the world, and it has been associated to the observed out of home food consumption. This study aimed to characterise children's menus in shopping center restaurants in Portugal, Hungary and Croatia, as a preliminary study to further develop strategies to intervene. Methods An observational cross-sectional study was carried out in shopping centres in Portugal, Hungary and Croatia. Only the ones providing a children's menu were selected. Data collection tool was developed by the research team, consisting of a three-section form to identify and characterise the restaurant and analyses the quality of children's menu. Results Researcher visited 295 restaurants, from which only 69 provided a children's menu. From these 12 restaurants offered gifts associated with it. The most frequently featured items on the menu were hamburgers (22%), grilled or fried chicken (19%), nuggets (17%) and pizza (12%). Potato chips were the most frequent side dish option (33%). Only 11 restaurants offered vegetable soup or vegetables. Although water was available, a variety of soft drinks and sugary fruit juices were also options. Sweet dessert is a common part of the menu. Nutritional information is present in only 13% of the menus. Menu prices do not differ much, Portugal having the higher average (x ̅ = €5.35±1.45). Hungary had the lower average (x ̅ = €4.30±1.50) and Croatia the lowest range (min=€3.00, max=€7.40). Conclusions Children's menu options have poor quality. Shifting foods offered to children in restaurants has the potential to improve diet quality, reduce excess energy intake and promote healthy eating habits. Key messages European strategies are needed to promote children healthy food environment. Following aim is to develop and test balanced menus for children among food chains.

O19 Incorporating Behavioral Economic Strategies into Children's Restaurant Menus to Improve Healthfulness: Parent Perceptions

Background Children's restaurant meals are nutritionally deficient; use of behavioral economic strategies may improve healthfulness. Parents play a role in children's restaurant meal selection, thus understanding parent preferences and potential behavioral economic strategies for healthful children menu options is warranted. Objective To examine parent preferences for 5 children's menu attributes featuring behavioral economic strategies. Study Design, Setting, Participants A descriptive, cross-sectional survey integrating a conjoint design was developed along with 8 children's menus. Menus were manipulated by varying levels of attributes [meal price, healthful side dishes, number of side dish items, healthful entrees, and cost for sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB)]. Parents with children 4–10 years old were recruited via Amazon's Mechanical Turk and asked to rate menus using an 11-point Likert scale (0 = Not at all appealing, 10 = Very appealing). Analysis A conjoint (regression) analysis was conducted to discern parent preference for each attribute and an overall menu preference. Descriptive statistics (means) were used to describe overall parent menu preferences and ratings. Results Ratings were generally high for the menus (µ = 6.7, SD = 2.4). Parents (n = 463) had the strongest preference for choice on side dishes (β = 0.73) and low-priced menus (β = 0.51). Parents reported the weakest preference for inclusion of healthful entrees (β = 0.04) and SSB (β = 0.18). The most preferred menu selected (60.7%, n = 281) included a low price, no bundled side (choice of side dish from multiple options), choice of 2 sides, healthful entree present, and an additional $1 for SSB. Conclusion A discrepancy between derived menu preference and a stated menu preference exists. Parents selected a socially desirable menu with healthful options and cost for SSB, contrary to the conjoint derived menu preferences. This discrepancy, along with derived preferences for multiple side dish options, could have implications for which behavioral economic strategies may be effective to improve quality of children's meals in restaurants, as parents’ true interest in healthful entrees is undetermined. Funding USDA Colorado State University, Departments of Marketing and Food Science and Human Nutrition.

O23 Switching Up Sides: Using Behavioral Economics on Children's Menus to Improve Vegetable Intake

Background Children in the US are eating frequently in restaurants, which is associated with poor dietary quality, including decreased vegetable intake. Behavioral economic strategies, such as optimal defaults, have increased children's orders of healthful sides, but it is unknown what children consume when healthful sides are presented. Objective To investigate whether restructuring the children's menu in restaurants using behavioral economic strategies can alter children's ordering and consumption of vegetable sides. Study Design, Setting, Participants A convenience sample of families with a child between 4-8 years old attended 3 dinners at a university-based, sit-down restaurant. Children's meals included 2 entree choices (macaroni-and-cheese or chicken tenders) and a default side: all carrots (150g; Meal-1), small fries (50g)/large carrots (100g; Meal-2), and small carrots (50g)/large fries (100g; Meal-3). Participants could opt-out of the default side and instead choose: only fries (Meal-1), or only fries or carrots (Meals-2/3). Foods offered were weighed pre- and post-meal to determine consumption. Measurable Outcome/Analysis Descriptive statistics examined children's ordering behavior. Repeated measures analysis of covariance examined the effects on fries and carrot consumption (g) controlling for child weight (lbs). Results Forty-eight children (6.2 ± 1.3 years; 25 male) participated. Most children remained with the default side (Meal-1: 90.2%; Meal-2: 97.6%; Meal-3: 87.8%). A small percentage of children who remained with the default ordered additional fries after receiving their meal (Meal-1, n = 4, 9.8%; Meal-2, n = 3, 7.3%; Meal-3, n = 1, 2.4%). After controlling for child body weight, no significant effect was noted of Meal condition on carrot (P = .39) or french fry consumption (P ≤ .99). Conclusion Use of optimal defaults leads to increased orders of healthful sides, however vegetable and french fry consumption were unchanged. Further investigation of optimal default use on children's menus is warranted. Funding USDA, Colorado State University.

Desert on the menu? What children are served in German full-service restaurants.

Prevalence of obesity and overweight among children is rising worldwide. Thus, the importance of restaurants as food environments is also growing. Considering these developments, the present study describes and evaluates menus and meals offered to children in German full-service restaurants. Using quota sampling procedure, a representative sample of German full-service restaurants was identified. The individual meals were then assessed, using the Children's Menu Assessment tool (CMA). A total of 500 restaurants and 1,877 individual meals were analyzed. On average, every menu included 3.76 ± 1.31 meals for children. The arithmetic mean of the CMA score was 0.73 ± 0.85. Around 80% of all offered meals were limited to eight typical dishes and over 50% included French fries or another form of fried potatoes. Not one of the meals included any nutritional information. Healthy entrees were never marked (e.g. by an optional qualitative information such as healthy food symbol or a healthier choice tag). Eighty-one percent of all the main components in the meals were rated as unhealthy and none of the meals used wholegrain products. The automatic inclusion of a drink and free refill options are both rather unusual in Germany, as well as the use of cartoon characters and product logos or giving away promotional toys. A positive correlation was found between the price of the food and its quality. The majority of dishes feature a high energy density while simultaneously having a low nutrient density. Overall, the range of food on offer for children in German restaurants is unhealthy and lacking in variety. There is an urgent need for improvement of both the menus themselves as well as the offered meals. Our study is not only by far the most comprehensive study, but also the study with the worst CMA score values worldwide.

Meal deals, combos and bundling: the impact on the nutrition composition of children's meals in restaurants.

Increased consumption of food outside the home means that the nutritional content of meals served in restaurants now makes a significant contribution to overall diet. Children's menus in restaurants, usually aimed at those aged 10 years and younger, are frequently high in energy, fat, salt, sugar and lack variety. The food and drink on children's menus are often bundled together as a combo or meal deal that may be convenient to order and sometimes, but not always, cheaper. Bundling has the potential to add additional foods that may not have been selected individually thus increasing the amount ordered and consumed. Substituting some meal deal items for healthier options has the potential to make it easier to eat well when eating outside the home and improve dietary intakes. However, the impact of such measures on child health has yet to be fully explored.

Testing the efficacy of and parents' preferences for nutrition labels on children's menus from a full-service chain restaurant: results of an online experiment.

Test the efficacy and perceived effectiveness of nutrition labels on children's menus from a full-service chain restaurant in an online study. Using a between-groups experiment, parents were randomised to view children's menus displaying one of five children's nutrition labelling conditions: (i) No Nutrition Information (control); (ii) Calories Only; (iii) Calories + Contextual Statement (CS); (iv) Calories, Sodium + CS; or (v) Calories and Sodium in Traffic Lights + CS. Parents hypothetically ordered up to one entrée, side, beverage and dessert for their child, then rated and ranked all five labelling conditions on the level of perceived effectiveness. Online survey. 998 parents with a 3-12 year old child. Parents exposed to menus displaying'Calories, Sodium + CS' selected significantly fewer calories 'overall' (entrées + side + dessert + beverage) compared to parents exposed to the control condition (-53·1 calories, P < 0·05). Parents selected 'entrees' with significantly fewer calories and lower sodium when exposed to menus with 'Calories + CS' (-24·3 calories, P < 0·05); 'Calories, Sodium + CS' (-25·4 calories, -56·1 mg sodium, P < 0·05 for both); and 'Calories and Sodium in Traffic Lights + CS' (-29·1 calories, -58·6 mg sodium, P < 0·05 for both). Parents exposed to menus with 'Calories, Sodium + CS' and 'Calories and Sodium in Traffic Lights + CS' were more likely to notice and understand nutrition information compared to other nuntrition labelling conditions. Parents perceived the menu with 'Calories and Sodium in Traffic Lights + CS' as most effective (P < 0·05). Menus disclosing calories, sodium and a contextual statement increased the proportion of parents who noticed and understood nutrition information, and resulted in parents selecting lower calorie and sodium entrées for their children in the hypothetical purchase task.

Optimal defaults as a strategy to improve selections from children's menus in full-service theme park dining

An “optimal default” refers to a pre-selected default option that promotes an outcome intended to be favorable to the individual and/or society at large. Optimal defaults preserve the decision-maker's ability to opt-out of the default and choose an alternative option. This behavioral economics strategy has been shown to nudge both child and adult consumers toward healthier food selections. Full-service restaurants with children's menus are key settings for implementing this approach. The current field study manipulated children's menus at two theme park restaurants, testing the effects of three different item presentations (i.e., lower-energy-dense default, standard fare default, and free array menus). Each menu was presented to consumers for 1 week at a time, in random order. Full choice was preserved with all menu options appearing across conditions, with non-default items listed as available upon request. The restaurants tracked food orders during each of the three weeks. Results showed that positioning lower-energy-dense foods as default menu choices increased the likelihood of lower-energy-dense menu selections and decreased the likelihood that customers would “opt-out” for standard fare. There were also significant differences in total caloric value of food ordered across conditions, with the optimal default menu condition promoting the lowest potential energy intake. This study further supports the effectiveness of optimal defaults to increase healthy food choices for children.

Trends in the Nutrition Profile of Menu Items at Large Burger Chain Restaurants

Fast food restaurants, including top burger chains, have reduced calorie content of some menu items in recent years. However, the extent to which the nutrition profile of restaurant menus is changing over time is unknown. Data from 2,472 food items on the menus of 14 top-earning burger fast food chain restaurants in the U.S., available from 2012 to 2016, were obtained from the MenuStat project and analyzed in 2019. Nutrition Profile Index scores were estimated and used to categorize foods as healthy (≥64 of 100). Generalized linear models examined mean scores and the proportion of healthy menu items among items offered in all years (2012-2016) and items offered in 2012 only compared with items newly introduced in subsequent years. Overall, <20% of menu items were classified as healthy with no change from 2012 to 2016 (p=0.91). Mean Nutrition Profile Index score was relatively constant across the study period among all food items (≈50 points, p=0.58) and children's menu items (≈56 points, p=0.73). The only notable change in Nutrition Profile Index score or in proportion of healthy items was in the direction of menu items becoming less healthy. At large chain burger restaurants, most items were unhealthy, and the overall nutrition profile of menus remained unchanged from 2012 to 2016. Future research should examine the nutrition profile of restaurant menus in a larger, more diverse sample of restaurants over a longer timeframe and examine whether results are robust when other measures of nutritional quality are used.