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All foods currently show a simplistic calorie count on the front of the packaging. However, according to both statistics and evaluation, it doesn’t seem to work. The Royal Society, a leading British public health charity, claims that consumers struggle to understand what calories actually translate to in terms of exercise and health.
As a result, The Royal Society is calling for all food and drink brands to include labels on the front of their products showing exactly how much time it takes to exercise it all off. The labeling, which will display an image of a stick figure walking, running, cycling and swimming, will estimate how long you must carry out any of the said activities to burn off the entirety of the product’s fat content.
A 171-calorie bag of chips would require an estimated 31 minutes of walking, 16 minutes of running or 23 minutes of cycling, according to the British Heart Foundation’s figures for activity. A can of fizzy juice containing 138 calories, would take 26 minutes of walking, or a 13-minute run.
The group aims to better inform adults who underestimate how important calorie awareness is. During a survey of 2,000 adults, carried out by the RSPH, 60 percent were found to be in favor of the activity equivalent labels; 53 percent said that the labels would convince them to eat less junk food, start healthier eating habits and do more physical exercise. The most incredible part of the survey is that 53 percent of the adults stated that the labels actually shocked them into a healthier lifestyle.
The RSPH’s chief executive, Shirley Cramer, stated that: “Although nutritional information provided on food and drink packaging has improved it is evident that it isn’t working as well as it could to support the public in making healthy choices.”
“Activity equivalent calorie labelling provides a simple means of making the calories contained within food and drink more relatable to people’s everyday lives, while also gently reminding consumers of the need to maintain active lifestyles and a healthy weight.”
“Given the responsibility of the food industry in tackling the obesity epidemic we believe activity equivalent calorie labelling could provide the nudge many people need to be more active and support their customers to make healthier choices.”
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