The Influence of COVID-19 Lockdown in the UK on the Consumption of Water and Sugar-sweetened Beverages, 2018-2022

Objectives A key challenge for behaviour change is by-passing the influence of habits. Habits are easily triggered by contextual cues; hence context changes have been suggested to facilitate behaviour change (i.e., habit discontinuity). We examined the impact of a COVID-19 lockdown in England on habitual consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). The lockdown created a naturalistic context change because it removed typical SSB consumption situations (e.g., going out). We hypothesised that SSB consumption would be reduced during lockdown compared to before and after lockdown, especially in typical SSB drinking situations. Design In two surveys among the same participants (N = 211, N = 160; consuming SSBs at least once/week) we assessed the frequency of SSBs and water consumption occasions before (Time 1), during (Time 2) and after lockdown (Time 3), across typical SSB and water drinking situations. We also assessed daily amount consumed in each period, and perceived habitualness of drinking SSBs and water. Results As predicted, participants reported fewer occasions of drinking SSBs during lockdown compared to before and after, especially in typical SSB drinking situations. However, the daily amount of SSBs consumed increased during lockdown, compared to before and after. Exploratory analyses suggest that during lockdown, participants increased their SSB consump¬¬tion at home, especially if they had stronger perceived habitualness of SSB consumption. Conclusion These findings suggest that SSB consumption is easily transferred to other situations when the consumption context changes, especially for individuals with strong consumption habits. Habitual consumption may be hard to disrupt if the behaviour is rewarding.研究目标 行为改变领域的核心挑战之一，在于如何规避既有习惯的影响。习惯极易被情境线索触发，因此学界提出可通过调整情境来推动行为改变，即习惯中断效应。本研究针对英国新冠疫情封控政策对含糖饮料（sugar-sweetened beverages, SSBs）习惯性饮用行为的影响展开探究。此次封控带来了自然情境的改变：原本饮用含糖饮料的典型场景（如外出场合）被消解。我们提出研究假设：与封控前后相比，封控期间人们的含糖饮料饮用频次会有所降低，且这一效应在典型含糖饮料饮用场景中尤为显著。 研究设计 本研究通过两项针对同一批参与者的追踪调查（初始样本量N=211，有效跟进样本量N=160，均为每周至少饮用一次含糖饮料的人群），评估了封控前（时间1）、封控期间（时间2）及封控后（时间3）三个阶段，参与者在典型含糖饮料与水的饮用场景下，两类饮品的饮用频次；同时测量了各阶段参与者的每日饮品摄入总量，以及对含糖饮料与水的习惯性感知程度。 研究结果 与预设假设一致，参与者报告封控期间的含糖饮料饮用频次显著低于封控前后，且这一差异在典型含糖饮料饮用场景中尤为明显。但与之相悖的是，封控期间参与者的每日含糖饮料摄入总量反而高于封控前后。探索性分析显示，封控期间参与者在家中的含糖饮料饮用量有所提升，尤其是那些自报含糖饮料饮用习惯更强的个体。 研究结论 本研究结果表明，当饮用情境发生改变时，含糖饮料的习惯性饮用行为极易转移至其他场景，这一现象在具有较强饮用习惯的个体中尤为突出。若该饮用行为能够带来正向奖赏，则习惯性消费模式往往难以被打破。