When students are dipping that golden, crispy French fry in ketchup, chomping on that juicy hamburger and taking a quick, refreshing sip from that oversized soda, they may not be thinking about the calories they consume.
Nutrition graduate student Jessie Green found while researching McDonald's restaurants that consumers who use menu labeling to determine what they order consumeabout 150 fewer calories than those who do not.
Green, who along with three ASU students will present her research at this week’s American Public Health Association Annual Meeting and Exposition in Boston, said her research has shown people have certain ideas about nutrition and health that may not be correct.
“It was fascinating to hear about why people practice certain behaviors and some of the misperceptions people have about nutrition and health,” she said.
ASU students Wendy Bader, Robin DeWeese, Green and Xuyang Tang will present their research from Nov. 2 to Nov. 6. The association attracts more than 13,000 international and U.S. health innovators to share specific findings and strategies for improving health.
The students will attend the meeting to present their research completed in collaboration with their mentor and associate professor in the School of Nutrition and Health Promotion, Punam Ohri-Vachaspati.
Green, who worked the students' mentor Ohri-Vachaspati, said the research involved evaluating the effectiveness of calorie menu labeling at McDonald's.
“We wanted to determine if noticing or using the calorie information was associated with a decrease in the total number of calories purchased,” she said.
Green said restaurants with 20 or more locations nationwide are required to post calorie information on menus and menu boards as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
In conducting research, Green and her group collected itemized receipts and survey data from 330 customers at 29 McDonald's locations throughout the Valley.
Green said it was interesting to learn about people’s eating behaviors.
“Based on these results, our take home message is that calorie menu labeling is an effective strategy in reducing national weight gain (by) helping consumers purchase fewer calories when eating at fast-food restaurants,” Green said.
Green also said she felt honored to have the opportunity to present her findings at the APHA conference.
“It’s like a dream come true," she said. "It makes me feel like our 100-plus hours of standing outside McDonald's recruiting study participants was totally worth it."
The students had other significant findings, Ohri-Vachaspati said.
DeWeese worked on issues related to children walking to school. In the work she will present at APHA, she has shown that children who walk to school are less likely to be overweight or obese.
Bader addressed the question of parents’ underestimation of their children’s weight status and found that this inaccuracy was more prevalent among parents of boys. Also, parents of older girls were more likely to accurately classify their daughter’s weight status compared to parents of younger girls.
Tang showed students who attend schools located near small grocery stores that offer healthier options are likely to have lower body weight.
Ohri-Vachaspati said although it was a challenge at times, she enjoyed mentoring the students.
“Each student brings their own perspective of answering a research question,” she said. "The students that I worked with last year are bright, smart and passionate about their work.”
Ohri-Vachaspati also said the students’ research is applicable in the real world.
“All of the results presented by these students have implications for program and policy design —whether it is related to menu labeling in restaurants or identifying populations to target for obesity prevention interventions,” she said.
Keith Lindor, dean of the College of Health Solutions, said the students' work brings positive attention to ASU and the college.
“Having our students present at national conferences helps highlight the work coming out of our school and helps bring great attention to our strong programs,” Lindor said.
Research brings awareness to prevalent societal issues, he said.
“Issues like obesity can be highlighted by research showing the prevalence of the disease, associated medical or social problems arising from obesity and new options for management,” he said.
Reach the reporter at mmkallo@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @its_ame_a_mario
