Abstract
Objective: To identify the relationships between nutrition labelling use and health/nutritional status.
Methods: A systematic review was conducted using articles published both in Japan and overseas. MEDLINE (PubMed) database was searched for overseas articles and the Igaku Chuo Zasshi and CiNii databases were searched for domestic articles. Handsearching was also performed for them. Nine Japanese articles and nine English articles were selected for analysis based on the results of a first screening by title/abstract and a second screening by reading of full papers.
Results: Most participants in overseas studies were adults, while most of them in Japanese studies were university students. Six overseas studies and two Japanese studies considered confounders. In these six overseas studies, participants who had health problems such as overweight were found to use nutrition labelling more frequently than those who had no health problems. However, there were some limitations, such as the subjective examination method of nutrition labelling use (i.e., self-reporting). In the two Japanese studies that considered confounders, no significant relationships were detected.
Conclusions: Participants in overseas studies who had health problems were found to use nutrition labelling more frequently than those who had no health problems. Particpants in Japanese studies were limited to university students, and no significant relationships were detected between nutrition labelling use and health/nutritional status.
