Why Should Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label?

There are many unhealthy products in the market; however, in the research, there is an indication that there is the need for the Warning Label on the products that are unhealthy for example fast food because there can be issues related to obesity, diabetes, and other life-threatening diseases. Following the latest trends, it could be said that there is a customer who believes in the organic and superfoods; there is the increasing interest of the customers as people realized the health benefits and not choosing the unhealthy options. There is the need to find out which products are unhealthy and should be given to clients or people with the indication that they are not healthy options; however, unhealthy products are easily accessible in the market and there is advertising to deceive or mislead the young adolescents.

There are several unhealthy food choices for the customers in the market; however, people need to be informed about the Health warnings so that they decide that they want to take the risk or not. Consequently, through labeling the product there is the need to raise awareness to the clients that they can suffer issues if eat or drink product that can be harmful to their health. Several food products are gaining the consumer’s attention because of advertising components. Therefore, this research can be conducted to tell people the harmful effects through examining behavioral intentions, perceptions, and attitudes of the people (Effertz, Franke, & Teichert, 2014).

Public health regulations need to be concerned in this way, as government or authorities need to make the regulation that is important for the customer's attitudes and purchase intention that before buying customers should know that how much harm can be the product is for their health’s or lives. Moreover, advertising elements are raising concerns about products so there may not be possible health issues. Ethical marketing techniques should be used based on some regulations. There are various unhealthy products in the market, thus, the health-risk products need to be concerned or focused as a visual and textual warning label (Effertz, Franke, & Teichert, 2014).

Research Question and Writer Connection:

Why should unhealthy products be sold with a Warning Label?

I have always been inclined towards the latest trends that have been observed in the domain of organic and super foods. With my increasing interest, I started to research the health benefits and affordability of organic and super foods. This led to further examination of unhealthy options that people prefer over these organic and super foods because the unhealthy food is mostly inexpensive and is easily accessible to people. This made me ponder on the question, how we could move our people towards selecting better and healthier food choices. I was once going through a shop and saw the warning cancer sign on a cigarette pack. This idea clicked my mind and I started to think that whether labeling the unhealthy products with a warning sign would lead to having healthier food choices among people or not?

Secondary Questions of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

After I brainstormed more ideas and researched this topic, some other secondary questions came into my mind to discuss:

1.      Will warning labels on unhealthy products make people select healthier food options?

2.      If anything has to be labeled with a warning sign, then is it really even food?

3.      Will warning labels act in the same way as warning cancer signs on cigarette packs as people still buy these cigarettes?

4.      Will warning labels act as a movement towards reducing death rates, obesity and diabetes etc. diseases?

5.      Should these warning labels/ messages also appear in unhealthy foods advertisements?

Research Ideas of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

I have done some research and found many ideas on the internet which I will discuss in my paper like:

1.      Linking tobacco sign movement and its impact on tobacco consumption rate to the future of fast food consumptions if the warning signs are printed on them.

2.      Finding out the ways in which fast food is causing obesity and other health related problems.

3.      Consumers also have the right to know about what they are eating and how it will impact their body and health.

4.      Advertisements lead to large consumption of unhealthy products; Advertisements should have warning labels on the effect of consumption.

Alternatives of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

There are different alternatives to conduct this research for instance:

1.      I can use primary and secondary sources to conduct research.

2.      I can use survey method to find out the behavior of people towards fast food and its consumption.

3.      To make use of observation of people while eating unhealthy items.

4.      To learn about the perspective of people regarding the consumption of organic and super food.

5.      To find out the reasons why people do not shift to healthier food options.

Tentative Thesis of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

The warning labels on unhealthy food items should be considered in the same way as tobacco products because they cause obesity, diabetes, and other life-threatening diseases.

Literature Review of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

The research conducted by Halim (2019) based on the consumption behavior that through advertisements companies are attracting children and adolescents for their profit. However, it is concerned in the literature that companies should focus on the warning labels so that customers can differentiate between the products and can select healthier food options. If there is the warning sign on the food as there are the warning cancer signs on the cigarette packs so it is analyzed that people if use or buy cigarettes it means that they are buying with their concerns. It is also focused on the studies that it helped in reducing death rates.

The junk food is not good for people as there can be a bad impact on the health of the people as they can face issues relating to obesity and diabetes etc. customers have unhealthy food options and they want to get the food because of the advertisements that are attracting them. People can suffer from diseases so it should be noticed by authorities that tobacco sign movement should be focused so that people may not suffer from life-threatening diseases (Halim, 2019).

The research conducted by Boncinelli, Gerini, Pagnotta, & Alfnes (2017) there is an aim to educate consumers regarding sugar-sweetened beverages. However, the customers need to be guided regarding the intake of the sugar-sweetened beverages as it could be harmful or the health of the people or children. However, it is focused on the study that there are people in the market who will not buy the products if they are informed regarding the issues that food can have in it. There can be intentions to buy the product with no warning labels. Sugar-sweetened beverages can result in health harms; sugar-added beverages are not healthy at all.

The research was conducted on the parent of the children that is there any importance of the warning labels or not. However, the experiment was done on parents as they were asked to select beverages that they would receive coupons if they label any sugar-sweetened beverages. However, it is analyzed that when they saw warning labels many parents did not select any of the beverages because there were warnings related to health issues. Control and calorie label conditions resulted in providing customers or parents with fewer coupons that were for sugar-sweetened beverages. Parents when knowing the health disadvantages that can be there for their children they did not buy the product and did not purchase sugar-sweetened beverages because of the warning or influence of warning labels.(Boncinelli, Gerini, Pagnotta, & Alfnes, 2017) 

The research conducted by Effertz, Franke, & Teichert (2014), focused on the prospective of advertising that there should be Warning Label on the items that are undesirable or that that can be unhealthy food choices. Furthermore, advertising elements are raising concerns about foodstuffs so there may not be possible health issues. It is concerned in the studies that there is the need to raise awareness regarding the food products so clients may not get the undesirable nourishment decisions.

 Ethical marketing techniques should be used based on some regulations. The moral decision need to be taken while advertising the products so there could be identification or different undesirable items in the market. Wellbeing of the customer should be the priority and unhealthy items should be concerned or engaged as a visual and printed cautioning name (Effertz, Franke, & Teichert, 2014). Through labeling the product there is the need to raise awareness that product can be harmful to their health.

Methodology of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

There will be the use of primary and secondary sources to conduct the current research. There will be the use of both data so that better analysis and results can be gathered on why unhealthy products should be sold with a warning label.

Both qualitative and quantitative analysis will be done. qualitative research focus on the literature review and quantitative research or data focus on the numerical data that what percentage of people or consumers enjoy unhealthy food and still attracted towards it after knowing that its unhealthy. In this research, there will be the use of survey methods so that there could be an evaluation of the behavior of people towards fast food as well as its consumption.

The questionnaire will be created to find out the people's choices and awareness or response regarding the healthy or unhealthy food items. There will be a focus on the people who are eating unhealthy items and their perspective towards the organic and superfood because of modernization and awareness. There will be a focus on the secondary research that is based on the collection of the primary research and it also comprises the interpretation of the primary data. There will be an analysis of the researches based on the why should unhealthy products be sold with a warning label that how the information related to our topic is gathered prior.

Moreover, primary data will be considered in this research and involves the questionnaire that will be filled from the respondents, so that better analysis of consumers can be done that how they reactive there is a label on the products and if they still prefer it as most of the people or customers getting awareness to eat healthy food.

After getting the questionnaire filled there will be evaluateion of the collected dat through statistical analysis (SPSS software), moreover the cronbach alpha test; co-relation test and regression test will be performed to know why unhealthy products should be sold with a warning label?

Tentative Sources:

References of Unhealthy Products be Sold with a Warning Label

amila Corvalán, M. R. (2018). Structural responses to the obesity and non‐communicable diseases epidemic: Update on the Chilean law of food labelling and advertising. PUBLIC HEALTH.

Boncinelli, F., Gerini, F., Pagnotta, G., & Alfnes, F. (2017). Warning labels on junk food: experimental evidence. International journal of consumer studies , 41 (1), 46-53.

Danielle, A., (2008), Should fast foods come with warning labels?, Helium, data retrieved from http://www.helium.com/debates/160774-should-fast-foods-come-with-warninglabels/side_by_side

Effertz, T., Franke, M.-K., & Teichert, T. (2014). Adolescents’ assessments of advertisements for unhealthy food: An example of warning labels for soft drinks. Journal of Consumer Policy , 37 (2), 279-299.

FDA, (2006), Nutrition Facts Label, FDA, data retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/UCM275412.pdf

Halim, R. E. (2019). Advertising to Kids and Tweens: The Different Effect of Warning Label Attached on the Product Packaging. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business , 6 (3), 193-203.

IJMRD. (n.d.). Why should fast food packaging be labeled with health warnings? Retrieved from https://www.ijmrnd.com/assets/pdf/american-journal-of-ophthalmology/fast-food-packaging-be-labeled-with-health-warnings.pdf

Neha Khandpur, 1. P. (2018). Are Front-of-Package Warning Labels More Effective at Communicating Nutrition Information than Traffic-Light Labels? A Randomized Controlled Experiment in a Brazilian Sample. Nutrients, 10(6), 688.

Wonderslist, (2013), 10 Worst Effects of Fast Food, Wonderslist, data retrieved from http://www.wonderslist.com/10-worst-effects-of-fast-food/