Debunking nutrition myths: An experimental test of the ‘truth sandwich’ text format

Abstract

Objectives: Myths about diet and nutrition are widespread and may seriously impact health and well-being. This study tests whether texts in a truth sandwich format, that is, texts presenting two blocks of factual, correcting information around a text block listing a myth and identifying it as false, are effective in reducing agreement with a range of nutrition myths. Design: Prestudy: observational survey; main study: 4 Text × 6 statement mixed experimental design. Methods: Out of 13 nutrition myths that were presented to 58 participants in a prestudy, the six most prevalent myths were selected for the main study. In the preregistered main study, 302 participants were randomly assigned to either reading one of three texts in the truth sandwich format addressing a nutrition myth or reading a text about healthy eating (control condition) before rating their agreement with a total of six nutrition myths. Results: Participants agreed less with the specific myth targeted by the truth sandwich text, while controls were not differentiating between them. Conclusions: Thus, truth sandwiches are effective in reducing agreement with myths and can be harnessed to promote evidence-based dietary practices to promote health in the population.