Potential impact of alcohol calorie labelling on the attitudes and drinking behaviour of hazardous and low-risk drinkers in England: a national survey

Abstract

Objectives We investigated the hypothetical impact of mandatory alcohol calorie labelling, comparing non-drinkers, low-risk and hazardous drinkers in terms of attitudes, knowledge about calorie content and hypothetical behaviour changes should labelling be introduced.Design Cross-sectional national telephone survey.Setting Community-dwelling adults in England between November 2022 and January 2023.Participants Data were collected from 4683 adults >18 years, of whom 24.7% were non-drinkers; 77.6% of alcohol drinkers were categorised as low-risk and 22.4% as hazardous drinkers according to the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test questionnaire.Primary outcome measures Attitudes to alcohol calorie labelling in shops and supermarkets and in hospitality venues, knowledge of the calorie content of alcoholic beverages (beer, wine, cider and spirits) and changes in drinking practices if calorie labelling was introduced.Results Comparisons were made between non-drinkers, low-risk drinkers and hazardous drinkers, with analyses adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and education. Attitudes to calorie labelling were generally positive, but were less favourable among alcohol drinkers than non-drinkers. Hazardous drinkers were more accurate in their estimations of the calorie content of wine, cider and spirits than non-drinkers (p<0.0001). Overall, 46.4% of drinkers indicated that they would change their drinking patterns if calorie labelling was introduced, and this response was more common among hazardous than low-risk drinkers (OR=1.43, 95% CI 1.199 to 1.699), adjusting for age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and education. Compared with low-risk drinkers, hazardous drinkers stated that they would be more likely to drink fewer alcoholic beverages, to drink alcohol less often, to choose lower calorie drinks and to do more exercise (adjusted OR 1.27, 1.009 to 1.606).Conclusions A sizeable proportion of hazardous drinkers indicated that they would change their consumption practices if mandatory calorie labelling was introduced. Promoting more positive attitudes to calorie labelling might lead to stronger intentions to reduce consumption. Mandatory calorie labelling of alcoholic beverages may make a modest contribution to energy intake and the maintenance of health weight, particularly among heavier drinkers.