KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PERCEPTION OF NUTRITION AND HEALTH CLAIMS ON PACKAGED FOOD AMONG ADULTS IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

Food manufacturers are aggressively placing nutrition claims on their packaged food products; some have even gone as far as to make health claims. However, few studies have been conducted to assess consumers' knowledge, attitude, and perception of these nutrition and health claims. It is a huge matter of their understanding of food manufacturers' nutrition and health claims. To address this issue, this cross-sectional study aimed to determine the knowledge, attitude, and perception of adults in Malaysia towards nutrition and health claims on packaged food products. A cross-sectional design was employed, utilizing a self-administered online questionnaire completed by 223 participants who were chosen through convenience sampling and aged 18 years or older. The study's results, analyzed using SPSS version 26.0, showed that the median score for knowledge of nutrition claims was 4.00, while the median score for knowledge of health claims was 3.00, indicating that the participants had a higher level of knowledge about nutrition claims than health claims. The median scores for attitude and perception towards nutrition and health claims were 19.00 and 20.00, respectively, demonstrating a positive attitude and perception towards these claims. The correlation between attitude and perception of nutrition and health claims was moderate and positive, with correlation coefficients of r = 0.686, N = 223, p = 0.000 and rs = 0.652, N = 223, p = 0.000, respectively. The results indicate that participants had a relatively good level of knowledge about nutrition claims but a lower level of knowledge about health claims. However, the participants had a positive attitude and perception towards both nutrition and health claims. In conclusion, the study provides a baseline for understanding nutrition and health claims among the adult population in Malaysia.