Effect of a story-based, animated video to reduce added sugar consumption: a web-based randomized controlled trial
Background Short and animated story-based (SAS) videos, which can be rapidly distributed through social media channels, are a novel and promising strategy for promoting health behaviors. In this study, we evaluate the effectiveness of a SAS video intervention to reduce the consumption of added sugar...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article (Journal) |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2021
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| In: |
Journal of global health
Year: 2021, Volume: 11, Pages: 1-12 |
| ISSN: | 2047-2986 |
| DOI: | 10.7189/jogh.11.04064 |
| Online Access: | Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.11.04064 Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: http://jogh.org/documents/2021/jogh-11-04064.pdf 
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| Author Notes: | Alain Vandormael, Violetta Hachaturyan, Maya Adam, Caterina Favaretti, Jennifer Gates, Till Bärnighausen |
| Summary: | Background Short and animated story-based (SAS) videos, which can be rapidly distributed through social media channels, are a novel and promising strategy for promoting health behaviors. In this study, we evaluate the effectiveness of a SAS video intervention to reduce the consumption of added sugars. - Methods In December 2020, we randomized 4159 English-speaking participants from the United Kingdom (1:1:1) to a sugar intervention video, a content placebo video about sunscreen use (no sugar message), or a placebo video about earthquakes (no health or sugar message). We nested six list experiments in each arm and randomized participants (1:1) to a control list or a control list plus an item about consuming added sugars. The primary end-points were mean differences (on a scale of 0-100) in behavioral intent and direct restoration of freedom to consume added sugars. - Results Participants (N = 4013) who watched the sugar video had significantly higher behavioral intent to cut their daily intake of added sugar (mean difference (md) = 16.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.5-31.8, P = 0.031), eat fresh fruit daily (md = 16.7, 95% CI = 0.5-32.9, P = 0.043), and check food labels for sugar content (md = 20.5, 95% CI = 2.6-38.5, P = 0.025) when compared with the sunscreen (content placebo) video. The sugar video did not arouse intent to restore freedom and consume added sugars when compared with the two placebo videos. - Conclusions Our SAS intervention video did not arouse reactance and increased short-term behavioral intent among participants to reduce their consumption of added sugars. SAS videos, which draw on best practices from the entertainment-education media, communication theory, and the animation industry, can be an effective strategy for delivering emotionally compelling narratives to promote health behavior change. |
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| Item Description: | Gesehen am 22.04.2022 |
| Physical Description: | Online Resource |
| ISSN: | 2047-2986 |
| DOI: | 10.7189/jogh.11.04064 |