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Effect of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Awareness on Consumption Practices among University Students in Nigeria

Abstract

Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) are widely consumed products that contain added sugars and may include carbonated soft drinks, sweetened fruit drinks, energy drinks, sweetened teas, and other commercially prepared beverages. Frequent consumption of SSBs has become an important public health concern because excessive intake of added sugars is associated with increased risks of overweight and obesity, type 2 diabetes, dental caries, and other non-communicable diseases. University students may be particularly susceptible to frequent SSB consumption because of academic demands, social influences, convenience, availability, aggressive marketing, relatively low cost, and lifestyle changes associated with independent living. Sugar-sweetened beverage awareness provides students with information about the sugar content of commonly consumed beverages, potential health consequences of excessive consumption, recommended approaches to reducing added sugar intake, healthier beverage alternatives, and the importance of reading nutrition information. Consumption practices refer to the frequency, quantity, type, timing, and patterns of SSB intake, as well as behaviours such as choosing lower-sugar alternatives, limiting portion sizes, and substituting sugary beverages with water or other healthier options. In Nigeria, increasing availability and accessibility of SSBs, changing dietary patterns, social influences, and limited awareness of their health implications may contribute to frequent consumption among young adults. Effective SSB awareness may improve students' understanding of the health consequences of excessive consumption and encourage healthier beverage choices. Against this background, this study investigates the effect of sugar-sweetened beverage awareness on consumption practices among university students in Nigeria. The study is anchored on the Health Belief Model, Social Cognitive Theory, and Knowledge-Attitude-Practice framework. The Health Belief Model explains dietary and preventive health behaviour through perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, and cues to action, providing a basis for understanding students' decisions regarding SSB consumption. Social Cognitive Theory emphasizes the interaction between knowledge, self-efficacy, social influences, behavioural capabilities, and environmental conditions in shaping dietary behaviour. The Knowledge-Attitude-Practice framework provides a basis for examining how improved knowledge and attitudes resulting from SSB awareness may influence consumption practices. Collectively, these theoretical perspectives provide a suitable framework for explaining how sugar-sweetened beverage awareness may influence consumption practices among university students in Nigeria. The study will adopt a quantitative quasi-experimental research design. Primary data will be collected from undergraduate students in selected universities in Nigeria using a structured self-administered questionnaire and an appropriate beverage consumption assessment instrument. A multistage sampling technique will be employed to select states, universities, faculties or departments, academic levels, and eligible students. Where feasible, selected student groups will be assigned to intervention and comparison groups. Students in the intervention group will receive structured SSB awareness education covering the definition and types of SSBs, sugar content of commonly consumed beverages, health consequences of excessive consumption, reading of nutrition information, appropriate portion sizes, healthier beverage alternatives, water consumption, and practical strategies for reducing SSB intake. Consumption practices will be assessed using indicators such as frequency and quantity of SSB consumption, types of beverages consumed, consumption patterns, portion sizes, frequency of choosing healthier alternatives, and attempts to reduce or limit SSB intake. Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize students' sociodemographic characteristics, SSB knowledge, exposure to awareness education, and consumption practices. Inferential statistical techniques, including chi-square tests, paired-sample tests, independent-sample tests, and multiple regression analysis, will be used to determine the effect of SSB awareness on consumption practices. Appropriate diagnostic tests will also be conducted to assess the reliability of the research instrument, model assumptions, goodness of fit, and robustness of the findings. The study is expected to find that sugar-sweetened beverage awareness has a significant positive effect on healthier consumption practices among university students in Nigeria. Students exposed to structured SSB awareness education are expected to demonstrate improved understanding of the sugar content and health implications of commonly consumed beverages and greater adoption of practices that reduce excessive SSB intake. Awareness may encourage students to reduce the frequency and quantity of SSB consumption, select healthier beverage alternatives, increase water consumption, consider sugar content when purchasing beverages, and become more conscious of portion sizes. However, education alone may not completely change consumption behaviour because students may continue to encounter barriers such as affordability, availability, taste preferences, peer influence, marketing, convenience, and limited access to healthier beverage options. Consequently, SSB awareness is expected to be most effective when supported by healthier food environments, accessible drinking water, nutrition labelling, campus health promotion programmes, and policies that encourage healthier beverage choices. The study is expected to contribute to the literature on nutrition education, dietary behaviour, non-communicable disease prevention, university student health, health promotion, and public health in Nigeria by providing empirical evidence on the effect of sugar-sweetened beverage awareness on consumption practices among university students. The findings will provide useful information to the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, National Universities Commission, university administrations, student health centres, nutrition and dietetics professionals, public health practitioners, food and nutrition programmes, development partners, and policymakers regarding strategies for reducing excessive SSB consumption among young adults. The study will also provide evidence-based recommendations for strengthening nutrition education, improving access to healthier beverage options on university campuses, promoting water consumption, enhancing nutrition information, and developing effective health promotion interventions aimed at reducing excessive sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among university students across Nigeria.

Keywords: Sugar-sweetened beverage awareness, consumption practices, university students, sugary drinks, added sugar, dietary practices, nutrition education, healthy beverage choices, non-communicable disease prevention, health promotion, public health, Nigeria.