The Effect of a Priest-Led Intervention on the Choice and Preference of Soda Beverages: A Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial in Catholic Parishes.
Journal Article
Background
Latin America ranks among the regions with the highest level of intake of sugary beverages in the world. Innovative strategies to reduce the consumption of sugary drinks are necessary.Purpose
Evaluate the effect of a one-off priest-led intervention on the choice and preference of soda beverages.Methods
We conducted a pragmatic cluster-randomized trial in Catholic parishes, paired by number of attendees, in Chimbote, Peru between March and June of 2017. The priest-led intervention, a short message about the importance of protecting one's health, was delivered during the mass. The primary outcome was the proportion of individuals that choose a bottle of soda instead of a bottle of water immediately after the service. Cluster-level estimates were used to compare primary and secondary outcomes between intervention and control groups utilizing nonparametric tests.Results
Six parishes were allocated to control and six to the intervention group. The proportion of soda selection at baseline was ~60% in the intervention and control groups, and ranged from 56.3% to 63.8% in Week 1, and from 62.7% to 68.2% in Week 3. The proportion of mass attendees choosing water over soda was better in the priest-led intervention group: 8.2% higher at Week 1 (95% confidence interval 1.7%-14.6%, p = .03), and 6.2% higher at 3 weeks after baseline (p = .15).Conclusions
This study supports the proof-of-concept that a brief priest-led intervention can decrease sugary drink choice.Clinical trial information
ISRCTN, ISRCTN24676734. Registered 25 April 2017, https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN24676734.Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Miranda, JJ; Taype-Rondan, A; Bazalar-Palacios, J; Bernabe-Ortiz, A; Ariely, D
Published Date
- May 2020
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 54 / 6
Start / End Page
- 436 - 446
PubMed ID
- 31850492
Pubmed Central ID
- 31850492
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1532-4796
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0883-6612
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1093/abm/kaz060
Language
- eng