Effects of immediate and distant health consequences: different types of health warning messages on sweets affect the purchase probability

BACKGROUND: Several health control policies have been discussed as a regulatory approach to tackle the increasing prevalence of obesity and other health risks related to sugar consumption. Health warnings, like the ones used in tobacco control worldwide, are one of the most promising approaches. However, in the case of health warning messages for food products, it is much more complicated and involves much more consumer involvement than tobacco guidance. Therefore, it is important to better understand the efficacy, evaluation, and reactance of health warning labels in the food sector regarding consumers’ behavior, persuasion, and perceptions. The aim of this study was to examine how different types (design and message) of health warning messages in combination with graphical applications affect consumer behavior. METHODS: In a 3 × 3 × 3 symmetrical design, 1,040 German participants completed an online discrete choice experiment including various text-only and image-and-text health warning labels on sweets. An accompanying questionnaire assessed socio-demographic variables as well as psychometric scales to understand the relationship between fear, control, reactance, and shocking/inhibiting/mediating health-related warnings. RESULTS: Our results suggest that especially emotional graphical images combined with text health warning labels might be more influential. The health effects of immediate (caries) and more distant health consequences (diabetes/obesity) differ in their impact. Further, results show that especially when consumers engage in a danger control process for overweight, warning messages have a negative impact on their choices. CONCLUSION: Hence, warning labels on sweets can potentially be a decisive factor when communicating health threats related to excessive sugar consumption. In the context of a targeted health policy, we see the need for further research, especially concerning the perception and understanding of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in the population.