Effect of the Social Transmission of Food Concerns on Perceptions and Behaviour

Abstract

Food intolerances and the health implications of modern foods have attracted a wealth of public and media attention in recent years. Occurring parallel to this public interest is an observed increase in perceptions of food sensitivity and the uptake of elimination diets. In contrast, medically-confirmed diagnoses of food allergy and intolerance remain at a relatively low rate, with experimental studies yet to find evidence of an underlying immunologic or metabolic cause for symptoms in the subjectively food sensitive. This study investigated the effect of a social transmission of modern food concerns on behavioural, perceptual and subjective health outcomes of relevance to subjective food sensitivities. Sixty nine participants were recruited to complete a taste testing for a yoghurt-like product. Participants were randomized to receive either a conversation that transmitted concerns about the health implications of modern foods, or a neutral conversation about the research facility. After experiencing the conversation, all participants were given the same yoghurt-like dairy product to consume. Eating behaviour, food perceptions, mood, and symptom reporting were assessed. Analysis of the results revealed that exposure to socially spread concerns about modern foods may impact eating behavior and food perceptions for females. Females exposed to modern food concerns reduced their intake of the food, consuming significantly less dairy food (p < .05) than males receiving the same social information. Females exposed to food concerns were also less likely to purchase the food in future (p = .068) and exhibited memory biases whereby the taste, texture and appearance of the food was recalled as less appealing 24 hours later (p = .060), despite no significant group differences in food perceptions immediately following food consumption. The results of this study suggest that concerns about modern foods can be socially transmitted to impact the eating behavior and food perceptions of females. The present study builds upon the results of existing research through showing that a novel method of social influence in experimental research can have implications for behaviour and perceptions in a topical illness context.