British consumers’ views of unhealthy foods and why they continue to eat them

Studies show that regularly eating ultra-processed foods can significantly raise your risk of developing serious health issues, like cancer, heart disease, and even early death. But what foods do Britons consider unhealthy, and why do they continue indulging despite being aware of the potential downsides? A new YouGov Surveys: Self-serve poll of over 1,000 British adults delves into which foods people consider to be unhealthy, and why do they continue to eat them despite being aware of the potential downsides.
Some key insights from the study include:

• More than nine in ten Britons (92%) consider foods high in sugar to be unhealthy followed by deep fried foods and fast food.
• More than two thirds of Brits (70%) say they read nutrition labels on food and drink items like candies, chips, sodas and cookies.
• Taste is the primary driver amongst consumers who consume chips, sodas, candies and fast food followed by ease of availability.

What foods do Britons consider to be unhealthy?

More than nine in ten Brits (92%) consider foods high in sugar to be unhealthy, followed by deep fried foods (87%), fast food (85%) and foods that are high in saturated or trans fats (85%).

A look at the data by gender reveals that women are typically more likely than men to consider these categories unhealthy. The largest difference between women and men come in their views of deep-fried foods (92% of women believe these are unhealthy vs. 82% of men), foods with artificial preservatives (67% vs. 57%) and processed foods (81% vs. 74%).

What are Britons’ attitudes toward nutrition labels?

Less than a tenth of Britons say they read nutrition labels on food and drink products every time (9%) and 61% read such labels most of the time or sometimes.

But does this awareness of the nutritional values of food and drink items such as candy, chips, sodas or cookies have an actual impact on Britons’ purchase decisions?

More than two-thirds of Britons who read nutrition labels say they have reconsidered a food or drink purchase after reading such labels (69%).

Interestingly, people between the ages of 18 and 34 who say they pay attention to labels are the likeliest of all to reconsider their food and drink purchases due to the nutrition labels they carry (77%).

Should unhealthy foods be advertised to children?

We asked British adults if the advertisement of unhealthy food and drink products like candies, sodas and fast food, towards children should be banned.

Nearly eight in ten respondents (78%) agree that these types of ads aimed at kids should be banned. Interestingly, an eighth of respondents ‘somewhat disagree’ with the statement (12%) followed by 4% who ‘strongly disagree’.

They seem to know better, so why do Britons still consume foods they consider unhealthy?

Evidently, Brits know which foods are unhealthy for them and why. In fact, more than two-fifths of respondents say they do not consume soda (44%), and more than a third say the same about candy (36%) and fast food (34%).

So then, what is the allure of these unhealthy products? A look at Brits who consume these categories of food and drinks reveals their motivations for consuming these products.

• Data indicates that taste is the primary driver across all four product categories, albeit significantly more so for candy (77%), soda (74%) and chips (73%) than for fast food (57%).
• Compared to 34% of respondents who consume candy because they like the variety of flavours that are available, only 12% of chip eaters say the same.

• Convenience is also a major driving factor for the consumption of these unhealthy foods. More than half of respondents who consume fast-food (57%) do so because it is readily available, as do nearly a third of those who eat chips (32%), candy (30%) and soda (30%).
• Ease of preparation has a significantly greater impact on Brits who consume chips (29%) and fast food (39%) than for those who consume candy (11%) and soda (13%).

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Methodology: YouGov polled 1,003 British adults online between 05 – 06 July 2024. The survey was carried out through YouGov Surveys: Self-serve. Data is weighted by age, gender, education level, region, and social grade. Learn more about YouGov Surveys: Self-serve.