The IFIC Foundation “Food & Health” Survey provides ongoing insights into how consumers view their own diets, their efforts to improve them, and their understanding of the components they incorporate into their diets. In 2007, new questions were added to explore consumer awareness and interest in foods and beverages with added health and wellness benefits.
Surveying the results
The majority of Americans (80%) rate their health status as “excellent” or “very good,” yet significantly fewer (58%) say they are “somewhat” or “extremely satisfied.” This gap indicates many Americans who consider themselves to be healthy also perceive room for improvement. In fact, almost two-thirds of Americans say they are making changes to improve the healthfulness of their diets, in an effort to improve overall wellbeing (70%), physical health (65%) and to lose weight (65%). Along these lines, Americans are making changes to improve the healthfulness of their diet by increasing consumption of specific foods and beverages (36%) rather than consuming less (29%).
Thus, consumers do believe in benefits offered by foods and beverages, including improving heart health (80%), maintaining overall health and wellness (77%), improving physical energy or stamina (76%), and improving digestive health (76%), among others. Furthermore, more than 80% of Americans say they are currently consuming, or would be interested in consuming, foods or beverages for these added benefits, as well as others.
When it comes to making purchase decisions, taste still rules. However, significantly more consumers cite the healthfulness of a product (65%) as a factor that influences their decision to purchase a food or beverage—behind taste (88%) and price (72%). Convenience was also mentioned by 55% of consumers, suggesting the desire for products that deliver on the winning combination of being healthful and convenient, while at the same time providing great taste.
IFIC recently commissioned Cogent Research, Cambridge, MA, to conduct a quantitative web-based survey of 1,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and older. The “2007 IFIC Functional Foods/Foods for Health Consumer Trending Survey” was fielded April 10 to 24, 2007, and it was weighted by education, age and ethnicity to the 2003 U.S. population estimate.
One of the most-intriguing findings is how consumers prioritize their health concerns. Prior to 2005, IFIC research found consumers’ top health concerns were cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer, with concerns about being overweight a distant third. Now, in the age of obesity hyperawareness, weight has climbed to the No. 2 health concern for consumers, just behind CVD. This trend was first seen in the 2005 research, with 34% of consumers mentioning weight as a top health concern, and remained stable in 2007 with 33% of consumers. Those most likely to mention weight as a concern are consumers who do not take supplements, females and consumers ages 18 to 34. However, heart-related and circulatory conditions, including general heart health, blood pressure, stroke and high cholesterol, remain top health concerns of consumers overall at 53%.
The majority (63%) of Americans remain confident they have a “great amount” of control over their own health. According to the IFIC survey, consumers overwhelmingly believe food and nutrition play “a great role” in maintaining or improving overall health (75%), and they are interested in learning more about these healthful components of food (83%).
Whole foods vs. components
As in past surveys, consumers more-easily identify certain whole foods, such as fish, milk, broccoli and carrots, as providing a benefit to their health beyond basic nutrition. These well-known “good-for-you” foods were joined by other foods, such as whole grains, green tea and certain herbs and spices, which are getting more coverage through various channels of consumer communication.
On an unaided basis, the top “functional foods” named in the 2007 quantitative survey were:
- Fruits and vegetables (general);
- Fish, fish oil, seafood;
- Milk;
- Whole grains;
- Fiber;
- Oats, oat bran, oatmeal;
- Green tea;
- Meat, red meat;
- Water;
- Herbs/spices;
- Dairy (other than milk);
- Cereal;
- Nuts.
It is not surprising that consumers more-readily mention certain foods that contain healthful components rather than the components themselves. For example, consumers understand that tomatoes, tomato sauce, strawberries and watermelon are good for them, but they may not be able to articulate that lycopene is the healthful component that they all have in common. Cross promotion of foods containing specific components, such as lycopene, can be helpful—and may contribute to increased consumer awareness and consumption over time.
Making connections
When asked, on an unaided basis, what foods may help keep certain diseases at bay, 9 in 10 consumers (92%) can name a health-diet pairing relationship. When prompted, the top health-diet pair, known by 89% of respondents, was calcium for bone health. Other top pairs included fiber for maintaining a healthy digestive system (86%), vitamin D for the promotion of bone health (81%), and omega-3 fatty acids for reduced risk of heart disease (76%), among others.
Some health-diet pairings that are gaining awareness among consumers include probiotics for maintaining a healthy digestive system (58% vs. 49% in 2005) and immune system (54% vs. 46% in 2005), and soy protein and/or soy for reduced risk of heart disease (55% vs. 41% in 2005).
The awareness of health-diet pairs often parallels consumer consumption of those foods. For example, of those respondents who are aware of the link between calcium for maintaining bone health, a full 56% said they are already consuming foods that contain calcium, such as milk, cheese, yogurt or calcium-fortified foods and beverages. Still, between 47% to 59% of consumers are not currently consuming foods or beverages for a specific health benefit, such as improving digestive health, providing higher levels of satiety or improved immune function, but would be interested in doing so.
Targeting communication
The media, especially electronic media outlets such as the Internet, are the top sources of information about health and nutrition, but people still look to their physician for guidance. According to the 2007 survey, 52% of respondents get their health and nutrition information from the Internet, followed by their physician (35%), television news (27%), magazines (26%) and friends and family (18%).
There is a difference among the ages. Americans ages 18 to 64 are more likely to name the media, Internet or web, as one of their top sources of information on health and nutrition, while those ages 65-plus were more likely mention their physician.
But, just because consumers get information from the media doesn’t mean they necessarily trust all the information provided. When asked on an aided basis who is the most-influential source of information regarding food and food components, 56% said health professionals, followed by dietitians (44%), health associations (37%), food labels (23%) and Internet articles (17%).
As more of the public appear to get their health and nutrition information from the mass media, it is important for everyone in the communication chain to provide the best, most scientifically accurate information possible. Consumers often say one of the reasons they do not make healthful lifestyle changes is because messages are often conflicting, and they desire more personalized information on how to make healthful dietary changes that “fit” their lifestyles. This research indicates consumers are primed for personalized messages about health-promoting foods. Science, coupled with a good understanding of consumer knowledge, is the foundation upon which effective food and health communications are built. Understanding both of these elements is paramount for creating successful products and crafting marketing messages that will resonate with consumers and ultimately increase their desire for foods that taste great and provide optimum health benefits, too.
Wendy Reinhardt Kapsak is director of Health and Nutrition, David Schmidt is president and CEO, and Elizabeth Baily is manager of Nutrition Programs, all of the International Food Information Council (IFIC), Washington, D.C. For more information on functional foods, including results from recent consumer research, visit www.ific.org/nutrition/functional. The full findings from the 2007 IFIC Foundation Food and Health Survey are available at www.ific.org/research/foodandhealthsurvey.cfm.
