Do you communicate about food, nutrition, or science? Do you find the statistic above discouraging – that less than 4 in 10 Americans strongly trust science about food, nutrition, and/or diet?
This post is the third in a series highlighting what can be found in the Science Communication Content Hub created by the International Food Information Council (IFIC).
The first post shared about the resources you can find there and encouraged you to put them to use.
The second post shared IFIC’s 4 Tips for Managing Misinformation.
This post shares their findings from the Spotlight Survey of Trust in Food, Nutrition, and Science, which was completed online by 1,000 adults ages 18 years and older. The survey measured the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs related to consumer trust in science about food, nutrition, and diet.
The sobering statistic illustrated above leads us to ask the question: How can a communicator regain consumer trust?
We will begin by reviewing credible information about this lack of consumer trust from the IFIC survey and then look at how to regain it using resources from IFIC and other credible sources.
Let’s dig in…
What did the IFIC Spotlight Survey find?
Less than 4 in 10 Americans strongly trust science about food, nutrition, and/or diet.
Among potential sources of food information, the most trusted are food and nutrition scientists, medical doctors/nurses, and registered dietitians.
Americans have more trust in food and nutrition scientists from universities than from food industry or government.
Among those with lower levels of trust in science about food, nutrition, and/or diet, just over half express willingness to change their diet if they had more trust in that science.
8 in 10 Americans say it seems like recommendations about what to eat and drink are always changing.
Many feel confused, frustrated, doubtful, and/or stressed about their food choices due to the perception that dietary recommendations seem like they are always changing.
4 in 10 Americans search for additional information online after noticing food, nutrition, and diet media headlines.
Just over half of Americans report being in a private social media group focused on food, nutrition, and diet topics.
Two-thirds of Americans say they are more likely to trust food advice if it comes from a registered dietitian.
More than 1 in 3 Americans get most of their food information from medical doctors and nurses, food and nutrition scientists, and/or friends and family.
The findings above are further explained and illustrated in the survey report available here.
In summary, credentialed nutrition professionals are among the most trusted sources of information. As nutrition communicators, we must increase consumer trust by reducing consumer confusion about science and we must increase consumer confidence in making sound nutrition decisions and food choices. We need to communicate clearly, concisely, and compellingly via channels consumers use.
Let’s see how to do that…
How can a communicator regain consumer trust?
Consumer trust in science is directly related to consumer understanding of the scientific process. The better someone understands the evolution of scientific inquiry, the better they can interpret the seemingly changing messages about food, nutrition, and health.
Therefore, being able to clearly explain how research in science builds a body of knowledge about a subject and how various factors can impact the translation of that knowledge into dietary and health guidelines is a key role of the nutrition communicator.
In addition to IFIC’s Science Communication Content Hub, here are three more helpful resources:
The article titled: “Can the public’s trust in science—and scientists—be restored?” from the University of Rochester, includes an interview with astrophysicist Adam Frank in which he describes the scientific research process with a creative analogy:
“I like to talk about the 3 “S’s” of science: spitballs, supertankers, and stadiums. Let’s take the question, “Is coffee bad for you?” Every other day you hear news of a research study showing it is bad for you or, no wait, it’s actually good for you. But every research paper is just a little spitball that’s being shot at the supertanker of science. It takes a supertanker seven miles to turn around. That means all those spitballs have to line up on the same side to make the supertanker change course. In other words, any individual research study doesn’t mean much by itself. Finally, who’s steering the science supertanker? Everybody!—a stadium’s worth of scientists. A consensus has to develop in the scientific community before you can say science “knows” something. What does this tell us about coffee and health? It tells us science doesn’t know yet. When you see all those reports going both ways it tells you the science isn’t decided.”
The Fall 2024 issue of the Dietitians in Business and Communications newsletter, titled: “Sharing Sound Science” is packed with useful guidance for communicating about science to consumers in ways that will increase their trust in science.
In a nutshell, the advice contained in this newsletter encourages nutrition communicators to understand their audiences, promote critical thinking, recognize various forms of bias, put information into context, simplify without oversimplifying, create meaningful messages, provide relevant examples, help consumers identify what is credible versus questionable, and help consumers put knowledge into action.
This resource also contains links to numerous other helpful resources.
The December 2024 issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics article titled: “Communicating Nutrition and Dietetics Research: A Crucial Step to Advancing Evidence-Based Practice” has a wealth of information about effectively sharing research findings with various audiences.
Some of the key features include easy-to-read figures describing how to make messages more accessible; how to make a research manuscript more widely disseminated; research dissemination resources, uses, and target audiences; and links to Academy resources for disseminating research.
Equipped with these resources, don’t shy away from responding to consumer confusion. Regain consumer trust by communicating science using clear language your audience understands, with relevant context and practical application.
"The science research of today is a temporary culmination of a very long, hard-fought struggle by a largely invisible community of our ancestors." ~ Gerald Holton
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