"Trends in Nutrition: How Healthy are Low, Slow & No" - the ZDF (the second channel of German television) will be broadcasting on this topic on Tuesday evening (May 7, 10:45 - 11:13 p.m.) in their show 'Lesch's Kosmos'. Here, they will also be reporting on studies carried out by Prof. Dr. Jörg Königstorfer, a full professor at the Chair of Sport and Health Management of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) together with Prof. Dr. Hans Baumgartner (Pennsylvania State University) as well as Prof. Dr. Andrea Gröppel-Klein (University of the Saarland).
Experimental as well as eye-tracking studies on products with fitness labels
"We examined what influence fitness labels on products have on the nutritional and purchasing behavior of consumers. In three experimental studies as well as an eye-tracking investigation we could show that the declaration 'Fitness' lends the products a kind of 'false halo', which leads those consumers who want to lose weight to more readily reach for these," explains Prof. Königstorfer, who is also Dean of Studies at the Department of Sport and Health Sciences.
For the shooting of the film in March on the Georg-Brauchle-Ring, a fictitious shop was set up with a number of different products. "The studies have a high relationship to purchasing practice. Each consumer must make hundreds of nourishment decisions weekly. Our results also show that further steps should be taken into consideration about the labelling of products in order to promote a healthier life style," says Königstorfer. Examples for such steps are the labelling of calorie content on the front of packages as well as the taxation of products with particularly health-endangering contents, especially if they are consumed regularly and in moderate to high quantities.
Publication in the Journal of Marketing Research & extensive media reporting
The results of the experimental studies with Prof. Baumgartner were published about four years ago in the Journal of Marketing Research, the most renowned journal in the field of marketing. As a consequence, numerous media, like the US news station CBS, the magazine Health and Shape, the online portal msn.de or the Apotheken Umschau as well as the Munich Merkur newspaper, reported on the results.
The show 'Lesch's Kosmos' is a weekly scientific show on the Second channel of German television. In each case physics professor Dr. Harald Lesch presents research results with a particular emphasis. On the average, about 1.5 million viewers throughout Germany tune in to 'Lesch's Kosmos'.
To Homepage of the Department of Sport and Health Management
Further Information on the studies of products with fitness labels
For ZDF report in the program Leschs Kosmos (from minute 12:33)
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Jörg Königstorfer
Chair of Sport and Health Management
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 Munich
Telephone: 089 289 24558
E-Mail: Joerg.Koenigstorfer(at)tum.de
Text: Dr. Fabian Kautz
Photo: TUM