How do US consumers define healthy foods? A content analysis of public comments to the FDA
Conference Year
January 2022
Abstract
In 2016, the FDA requested public comments on the criteria for labeling foods “healthy,” including whether the term should be defined by a food’s nutrient content or additional criteria. Public comments (1,144) were content analyzed using an inductive coding scheme to generate categories representing the most common themes found in the comments. The most frequently reported criteria for evaluating the food's healthfulness were added sugar and/or sodium levels and fatty acid profiles; however, only 35% of the comments defined healthy foods based entirely on nutrient content. Many comments cited additional criteria, including food processing and food production practices.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Dr. Jane Kolodinsky
Graduate Student Mentors
Nick Rose
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Program/Major
Food Systems
Primary Research Category
Food & Environment Studies
Secondary Research Category
Health Sciences
How do US consumers define healthy foods? A content analysis of public comments to the FDA
In 2016, the FDA requested public comments on the criteria for labeling foods “healthy,” including whether the term should be defined by a food’s nutrient content or additional criteria. Public comments (1,144) were content analyzed using an inductive coding scheme to generate categories representing the most common themes found in the comments. The most frequently reported criteria for evaluating the food's healthfulness were added sugar and/or sodium levels and fatty acid profiles; however, only 35% of the comments defined healthy foods based entirely on nutrient content. Many comments cited additional criteria, including food processing and food production practices.