Researchers Give Food Labeling The "Green Light"
By Dr. Brian McDonough
PHILADELPHIA -- Researchers at Massachusetts General hospital say that food labeling could be made much easier if only a stop light method was put in place.
That's right: green, yellow, red food labels lead to long-term improvements in the selection of healthier food items.
They conducted a cafeteria food study that had two parts: the first was use of the "traffic light" labels, in which "green" signified the healthiest items "yellow" was used for less healthy items, and "red" for foods with little or no nutritional value.
Cafeteria cash registers recorded how many foods of each color was purchased.
The second part was also crucial; it was the placement of food.
Healthier items were placed at eye-level and less healthy items at lower levels.
After the first six months, there was a 12% increase in the purchase of "green" items and a 20% decrease in the purchase of "red" items.
The results have held for two years.