New Report Shows Disconnect Between Health Intentions vs. Actions

Eating well, exercising more, sleeping better and reducing our impact on the planet – a NEW research report from Herbalife Nutrition, based on findings from Mintel (surveying 1,000 UK based consumers), has revealed that across the UK we have solid intentions to enhance both our health and the world we live in.

However, despite our intentions, when it comes to our actions it seems the follow-through simply isn’t there. Whether it’s a lack of information, confusion from conflicting sources, cultural influences or simply nervousness around trying new things, something is standing in the way of us achieving our wellbeing ambitions.

SHORT TERM SACRIFICES FOR LONG TERM GOALS

With 60% of UK consumers reporting eating healthily as one of their top five wellness priorities and 47% highlighting weight management on this list, nutrition is clearly important to consumers when it comes to achieving their wellness goals.

In addition, when we look at consumers’ intentions to achieve these goals, we can see that across the country, 67% said that they would make short-term sacrifices for their long-term health.

However, when we delve deeper into putting these goals and ambitions into practice, the research tells a different story.

A DESIRE TO EAT WELL BUT CONFUSION OVER WHAT THIS ENTAILS

Despite the previous data showing that eating healthily and weight management are key goals for many in the UK, when consumers were asked how often they currently eat healthily, only 58% said that they do so most or all of the time while 43% said occasionally, rarely or never.

If we couple this with the fact that 23% of those polled say that they don’t eat enough fruit and vegetables and 14% think they don’t get enough protein, we can see that our healthy eating intentions are not being matched by our actions.

Andrea Bertocco, Director of Scientific Affairs for Herbalife Nutrition in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, expands on this:

“While it’s encouraging that wellbeing intentions are clearly there, we need to look at what can be done to overcome barriers to turn this intention into reality. There’s no doubt that eating healthily and leading a balanced and active lifestyle can be challenging with the busy lives we all lead today. That’s why a lot of this comes down to educating consumers on different options and how to achieve their wellbeing goals to fit into their lifestyles”, he says.

Adding to this, Bertocco says:

“Advancements in science mean that a ‘good diet’ doesn’t need to be three meals a days of varying food types; doing exercise doesn’t need to mean beating yourself up to go to the gym. In many ways, we need to re-frame our thinking and help consumers navigate their own wellness journey within the variety of options now available to them. Essentially, eating well doesn’t have to look the same for everyone – bespoke plans are vital to success”.

A LOVE FOR LOW SUGAR BUT A MISSED OPPORTUNITY FOR PLANT PROTEINS

Looking at UK consumers’ shopping habits, the research revealed that ‘contributes to your fruit/vegetable intake’ (31%), ‘low sugar’ (28%) and ‘natural ingredients’ (29%) are of the highest importance when shopping for food. While these are obvious choices for those seeking to enhance their wellbeing, it was interesting to see that avoiding animal-derived foods (8%) and eating high amounts of protein (13%) scored low, suggesting there is a lack of understanding in the UK about how these two things could impact longer term health.

Andrea Bertocco continues:

“Given the potential health and environmental benefits of reducing the consumption of animal products, more work needs to be done to help consumers get the right insights into how achieving a balanced diet will benefit their wellbeing both from a health and environment perspective”.

CLIMATE CHANGE CONSCIOUS BUT THAT’S NOT IMPACTING WHAT WE EAT

While our own health was key, ensuring the wellbeing of our planet was also important. In fact, nearly half of participants (48%) agreed that climate change will affect the food they buy. However, this intention to make more sustainable choices then clashed with 43% saying that they don’t eat plant-based dairy alternatives and 40% saying they don’t eat plant-based proteins and don’t want to in the future. Clearly there is a desire to address emissions but insight into how the meat-farming industry contributes to climate change isn’t cutting through.