Ruani, Maria A;
Reiss, Michael J;
Kalea, Anastasia Z;
(2023)
Diet-Nutrition Information Seeking, Source Trustworthiness, and Eating Behavior Changes: An International Web-Based Survey.
Nutrients
, 15
(21)
, Article 4515. 10.3390/nu15214515.
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Abstract
To understand the extent to which different sources of diet and nutrition information are sought, trusted, and relied upon for making dietary changes, the present international web-based survey study gauged participants’ (n = 3419) diet-nutrition information-seeking behaviors from 22 interpersonal and general sources with varying quality, trust levels in these sources, and reliance on each source for making dietary changes. Qualitative insights were also captured regarding trustworthiness formation. The results revealed a disconnect between source popularity and perceived trustworthiness. While nutrition–health websites, Google–Internet searches, and diet–health books were most commonly consulted, participants placed the highest level of trust in nutrition scientists, nutrition professionals, and scientific journals, suggesting that frequent information seeking from a subpar source may not be a reliable predictor of the level of trust assigned to it. Although the frequency of source-seeking behaviors and source trustworthiness both contributed to dietary changes, the latter appeared to have a more pronounced influence. When a source was less trusted, there was a reduced likelihood of relying on it for changing diet. Additionally, source seeking may not always translate into effective dietary change, as shown by the less strong correlation between the two. These associations significantly differed depending on the source.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Diet-Nutrition Information Seeking, Source Trustworthiness, and Eating Behavior Changes: An International Web-Based Survey |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.3390/nu15214515 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15214515 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third-party material in this article are included in the Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Keywords: | Nutrition misinformation; literacy; eating behavior change; dietary change; sources of information; information-seeking behaviors; source trustworthiness; public health; communication; social media; misinformed beliefs |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10180053 |
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